


Killer in the Wild

by Apn_Echo



Category: Frozen (Disney Movies)
Genre: Adventure, Adventure & Romance, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Death, F/F, Fantasy, Romance, Violence, Wilderness
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-04
Updated: 2020-01-04
Packaged: 2021-02-27 12:08:13
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 12
Words: 46,768
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22116889
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Apn_Echo/pseuds/Apn_Echo
Summary: Elsa Welch, daughter of the world famous hunter, travels to South Africa, far into an uncharted jungle island for a hunting expedition, in search of adventure. Rumors of the island were never lost on her. How, many have traveled there and never returned. How you can hear their cries from across the sea. Things take a turn for the worst when her team is attacked and she is left behind on the island to fend for herself. It is then that Elsa comes face to face with the woman who brought all those rumors to life.A beautiful, redheaded killer.
Relationships: Anna & Elsa (Disney), Anna/Elsa (Disney)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 49





	1. Prologue

"Faster, Idunn! Faster!" The terrified man encouraged his wife as they ran through the jungle, twigs snapping and leaves crunching under their rushing feet, loud barking echoing behind them. In the arms of the father, a five year old girl silently cries. She had little knowledge on what was actually happening; but she did know that whatever it was, it had her parents shaking from their head to toes, and if anything can scare her parents, it damn well is dangerous.

Their heart raced, their legs ached, their lungs burned, but they ran. They ran just until they could not anymore. As they ran, they began to realize the stone like walls beginning to encase them from the sides; but they didn't stop. They kept going, the walls slowly curving inwards towards itself until it another wall appeared in front of the family of three. Looking up they could see that they were at the bottom of a cliff that was probably more than 200 ft high. The male of the trio looked left and right, but there was nothing but bushes and tall stone walls, and the only way to escape this dead end was to go back; but they could not even do that. It would be one hell of a risk.

"Shit!" The man growled. He turned to his wife, Idunn "There's no way out, and we can't go back!"

"Agdar calm down," She assured, "They probably lost us?"

"No, they couldn't have! They have hounds! They know our scent, a-and they're getting closer!" Agdar turned his attention to the sobbing girl in his arms, then frantically scanned his surroundings. "There!"

He placed the girl onto the ground and got onto one knee, matching her height so that they could be eye to eye. "Anna, darling. Listen to me! Listen to papa!"

The little girl, Anna, stared into her father's eyes, then nodded slowly.

"Alright, you see that bush over there?" Agdar pointed to a bush behind his daughter. Anna glanced at it and nodded once again. He placed his hand upon her auburn hair, stroking it lightly, "I need you to go hide behind it. Don't make a sound, and don't come out for anything! Do you understand?"

A nod.

"Good. Think of it like a game. Like hide and seek. You don't want the bad man to find you, so you have to hide until he leaves; and when he leaves, count to fifty. Then, and only then, is when you can come out, okay?"

"Okay." Anna replied simply.

*snap*

Everyone's attention was turned towards the area where the sound came from.

"Agdar!" Idunn gulped

Agdar, for the last time, looked towards his daughter, "Alright, now go! And remember what i said! Stay quiet, stay put, and don't come out until you've reached fifty! Go!"

Anna raced towards the bushes, pushed herself through them, and hid just behind. She sat down, and hugged her knees to her chest. A wave of fear overcame her once more, and she was on the verge of crying; but like her father said, she must stay quiet. So she attempted to swallow her fear, and the urge to cry. Glancing up, she noticed a small gap between the leaves of the bush, which allowed her to get a view of her parents. The gap wasn't wide enough for her to be seen through, but just so that she could see what would occur on the other side. She watched as her father gi`ve her mother a quick kiss on the temple, as the sound of snapping twigs and shuffling leaves grew closer. Just then, five men appeared into view. With those men were two hounds, growling in hunger and warning at her parents. Their teeth were bared, their eyes were darkened, and they tugged at their leashes, hoping to get free and tear Agdar and Idunn apart limb by limb. One man, the tallest out of all five, took a few steps, placing himself between Anna's parents and his crew. He smiled, his hand reaching up to pick at his brunette beard thoughtfully. It was eerily quiet, save the audible growling of the hounds. No one spoke, for they all knew what was to come. No one thought, for they all knew there was nothing to think about. No one moved, for they all knew, not a twitch could prevent their fate. Anna watched closely, praying to God that her parents were going to be okay. She then caught notice of the brunette haired man reach slowly to the back of his waist. He lifted up his shirt slightly, and his fingers danced their way around the handle of a stainless-steel object, pulling it from the back of his pants and bringing it between him and Agdar. Agdar didn't even blink.

"So this is how it has to be, eh?" Agdar sighed.

"Yeah, it is." The other man stated.

"You know, I trusted you Cedrick." This time, Agdar's voice was filled with pain, and betrayal. This made the other man smile.

"Yeah," the man, Cedrick, chuckled, "you did."

"All this, for a jungle? For an island?"

"I have big plans Agdar, big plans! And if you won't give me the rights to this island, then i'll have to take it from you." Cedrick's green eyes showed hatred, anger, and had a sinister glow to it. It made Anna shiver with discomfort.

"Those plans involve you destroying what my ancestors founded, and what my father passed on to me."

"I don't care." Cedrick rolled his eyes.

"You do know, that if anything happens to me, you can't get the rights to this land."

"Oh I know."

A silence.

"Hey, Cedrick, where's the kid?" Another one of the five asked. This was was short, and his head was cleared of hair. His brown eyes scanned the area for Anna.

"That doesn't matter," Cedrick replied, "She's as good as dead anyway."

He turned his attention back to the married couple, "I'm gonna give you one last chance, Agdar. Sign the papers."

Agdar stared the man straight in the eye, a blank expression on his face, "Over. My. Dead. Body."

Cedrick shrugged, "suit yourself."

With what happened next, it took all of Anna's willpower not to scream in terror. Cedrick squeezed the trigger on the gun. A loud *bang* sounded, and the next thing Anna knew, her father was on the ground, and a hole was in his head. Another *bang* and her mother followed. Anna's hands were practically clamped tight over her lips so that she wouldn't scream. Tears fell freely down her face as she shut her eyes tightly and rocked back and forth to calm herself. She could hear the footsteps of the five men, as they walked away with the looks of triumph on their face.

'One'

They were gone

'Two'

Her parents were just murdered

'Three'

Her parents are Dead

'Four'

She's all alone now

'five'

They've abandoned her

Anna counted, and counted. Rocking back and forth in hopes that she will forget everything she saw. She even pinched herself a couple times in hopes that this was all a dream and that she'll wake up anytime soon. But she knows she won't. She knows that she'll never forget. She will forever have to hear the gunshots, feel the pain, fear, and shock, see the bodies of her guardians fall to the ground limp and lifeless; she will forever have to smell the smoke from the gun and the stench from the corpses. There was just no escaping it. Even as she realizes this she still pinches, and rocks, and counts. It was when she got to fifty that she realized…

she was trapped here

on this island…

alone.


	2. Expeditions

"This is gonna be our best one yet!" A pumped up platinum-blonde woman smiled in wonder and excitement. She was sitting in the passenger seat of a sky blue Ferrari, beside from a hazel eyed, muscular blonde man. The duo was currently driving through the streets of Cape Town, South Africa. The place was beautiful and had many tourist attractions. Elsa was amazed by the people who dwell here. She wondered why she never came to this place sooner!

"Elsa, are you sure about this? Have you heard what happened on that island?"

"Kristoff, it's not everyday you get to visit the world's second largest island, let alone one that you own!"

Kristoff only grunted, "Well do we have to work with Hans? I don't trust him. You know that."

"That's because you don't know the guy like I do." Elsa rolled her eyes.

"Maybe not, but I know something's not right about him. I can feel it. He's a creep Elsa. His whole family is a family of fucking creepiness, who dwell in the town of creeps!"

"That's a little rude," Elsa lightly punched the blonde man's arm, "considering the fact that you've never met them."

"Yeah well," Kristoff took a right turn on a green light before changing the subject. What to change it to though, he wasn't sure. He remembered, about a week ago before they met up for this trip, Elsa had called him.

She was crying, and drunk, and she was rambling on about how she hated her former lover, Belle; how she would never be able to trust another person again. He really didn't get the whole story, but he'll wait until she's ready to talk about it, even if it takes years. "So Belle-"

"What about her?" Elsa interrupted him, her eyes darkened in hatred.

"What happened with you two?"

"Nothing I want to talk about at the moment."

"Great," Kristoff sighed. That conversation went way quicker than he thought. But he guesses that it's okay since apparently they also arrived way quicker than he thought. "well, we're here anyways."

The car pulled up to a dock. It came to a stop and the duo got out, and stepped outside to be met with a warm breeze, and a shining sun. Kristoff went to the back of the car to receive their bags from the trunk. Then, he examined the dock. It was big, and many boats were anchored about. Sailors and captains scurried around as they each got prepared for their own adventures. Kristoff's eyes scanned the multiple water vehicles in search for a specific one. His eyes stopped, and he lifted his arm, pointing over at a white, gold-rimmed ship with golden fancy letters on the side that spelled, "The southern Isle"

"There." He stated, "That's our ride." Not receiving an answer, he turned his head to look beside him, only to find no Elsa. Shocked, he frantically searched for his sister-like friend, but when he caught sight of the same boat, he noticed a pale figure walking up the walkway to the entry of the ship. Kristoff groaned, locked the car, and sprinted after her.

Elsa stepped onto the smooth plywood of the ship's floor. She gasped, and marveled at the beauty of the ocean under the sun's rays, and the shining of the ship's recently cleaned exterior. She could see few fish swimming in the water, and even a few leaped out, as if to greet her. She sighed as the sun kissed her skin, and all she wanted to do in that moment was to stand their and take in all of sea nature's glory. But that wish was cut short when she was suddenly tackled to the ground by two hairy creatures. She landed with an 'oof', and grimaced as she felt the weight of the creatures on her stomach, a wet, warm tongue scrape her face.

"Damn it, Sven! Sitron! Get the hell off me!" Elsa squealed, not amused with their excited antics. She wasn't a dog person. She couldn't stand them. The dogs seemed to ignore her, lost in their own excitement of seeing her again. sven, the German shepherd licked her all over her face happily, while the golden retriever Sitron, tugged hard at her clothing in his own violent way of greeting.

"Hey! Get off of her!" A handsome voice laughed from behind Elsa. The dogs halted, ready to obey when they caught sight of someone else they knew, approaching the ship. They grew excited, once again, and raced down the walkway to their next victim.

Elsa sat up on her haunches and wiped her face off with her black t-shirt. When the shirt went away from her face, a hand came towards it. Smiling in relief, she took it and it pulled her to her feet. "Thanks, Hans."

"No problem," Hans replied, scratching the back of his auburn head. "Good to see you, Elsa."

"Good to see you, too." She smiled.

"I see you've brought Kristoff?" Hans sighed.

"Yeah, but don't worry. He won't cause a lot of trouble...hopefully." Elsa assured him.

Hans nodded, and after a second of silence he perked up, "Well," He clapped his hands together before entwining his fingers, "I'm going to help him get those dogs off and get those bags on the ship, Why don't you go search for an open room? Dinner will be at eight."

Elsa nodded and watched him walk off. This was going to be an exciting hunting expedition, she could feel it. She went inside to examine the rooms of the ship, and to pick which one she wanted to temporarily reside in.

~~000~~

Pork Steak, sweet potatoes, rice, bread and butter, turkey, chicken, and chocolate cake filled with chocolate fudge inside, along with a glass of wine. Man does it feel good to be rich. Elsa sighed in satisfaction, the sweet aroma of the freshly cooked meal causing her mouth to water. She took her fork, and grabbed one of each dish to put on her plate save the chocolate cake. No. She would save that for later. To her right, Kristoff was already halfway done with his first plate, ready for another. She swore, that guy could fucking eat. She'd sometimes be on her seconds while he'd be on his fifth plate. She'd never have to worry about leftovers because there'd be none. She'd even have to make herself a second plate before she could even finish her first in fear that Kristoff would eat all the food.

The dining hall was big. There were more than fifty tables around here but only about thirty hunters and huntress. Some tables were big, like theirs, and others were small.. The floors were white and seemed to be made of marble. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling, and waiters and waitress' roamed around the area, trays in their hands either with food or drinks, asking their guests if the wanted anything. Like stated earlier, man does it feel good to be rich. Hans, who was sitting at the table with Elsa and Kristoff, decided to break the silence. He cleared his throat loud enough for the other two to hear.

"So, now that we're all together, I've been meaning to ask," He leaned back in his seat, picking at his auburn sideburns thoughtfully. He gained that habit from his father. "What inspired you to organize this lovely trip for us?"

"Oh! Yes!" Elsa gasped, "Okay, here's the thing. Back at home, I was rummaging through some of my father's papers. You see, I was looking through his and mother's room because…well, they died. I wanted to gather things I could remember them by."

"I'm sorry," Hans interrupted sympathetically.

"It's fine," Elsa assured, waving him off, "anyway, while going through his papers, I found a letter attached to a deed. It was from one of my father's closest friends. Agdar. You see, it said that if anything happened to him, my father, or anyone in his family line can have the rights to the Arendelle Island. But that is only if Agdar's child isn't there to inherit it themselves-"

"And everyone knows that the Arendelle family disappeared fifteen years ago on that very island." Kristoff cut in. "And now it's haunted…"

"It's not haunted, Kristoff! Ghosts aren't real." Elsa countered.

Hans chuckled, "Ah, you've heard the rumors."

"Rumors? With a plural? As in there's more?" Elsa groaned.

"Yes." Hans answered, taking a glass of wine of the tray of a passing waitress. He took a sip. "One I personally find interesting is this. On that island, is a man, that takes any visitor, vacationer, hunter, whatever. And he slowly, mercilessly, and cruelly tortures them. Their screams are so loud that they echo across the whole ocean and into the city of Cape Town."

"Wow...bullshit." Elsa deadpanned.

"Oh, come on. You're no fun." Hans groaned.

"Yeah well, neither are these dumb ass stories you're telling."

"What if they're not stories? What if they're true?" Kristoff smirked.

Elsa reached across the large table to fix herself a second plate. Most of the food was already gone. Why? The blonde man was on his fifth plate, like stated before. "If they were true, then they wouldn't be called rumors."

"Fair enough." Hans laughed, "but about the deed you found?"

"Oh yeah," Elsa got back on track, "So, long story short, I now have the rights to the said Island. And I thought, why not go explore my new land? Get a bit of hunting done along the way?"

Hans was silent. In fact he seemed to be in his own land. A small smirk grew onto his lips and this caught Kristoff's attention.

"Hey Hans!? What are you thinking about over there?"

Hans, a bit startled, shook his head, "I...uh...you...didn't thank me? Yeah. You forgot to thank me, Bjorgman."

Both Elsa and Kristoff were a little confused, though Kristoff was a little more annoyed. "Thank you? Why would I thank you westerguard?" Kristoff huffed, emphasizing Hans' last name. He couldn't stand when people called him Bjorgman. It's like they're taunting him or sassing him and he didn't like either of those.

"For looking after Sven of course?" Hans smiled sincerely.

"I didn't ask you to do such a thing."

"Of course you didn't. But I did it to assist a dear friend of mine. With all the suitcases you two have brung, if i didn't look after Sven, you wouldn't be able to bring him here yourself." Hans pointed out.

"I don't need your help, and I am not your friend."

"Okay!" Elsa interrupted with a clap of her hands, "This was a great dinner! I'm going to bed now, and Kristoff so are you!"

Kristoff mumbled something in protest under his breath but abides nonetheless.

They both stood up and Hans followed, but not before wiping his lips with a napkin. He smiled, "We should be at the island by tomorrow morning. So be ready." Hans bid them a good night and the two blondes started off towards their rooms.

"Well that was...something." Kristoff chuckled, scratching the back of his head nervously. Elsa said nothing. "Look if you're going to do something then do- OW!" He cried, tending to the forming bruise on his shoulder.

Elsa had punched him and she was tempted to do it again, "What the HELL Kristoff!?"

"What?"

"Why can't you see that Hans is trying to be a good guy here? Why can't you see he's trying to be your friend here? I haven't seen him in a long time-"

"I know! He's been your friend since you two were twelve, but as your best friend and brother figure I'm telling you there's something off about him! I don't trust him!"

"Well then start to!" Elsa warned. They both stopped in front of their room doors which were right across from each other, "Because you are going to be around him for a week and I don't want anymore of your bitching about it."

With that, Elsa opened her room door, went inside, and slammed it shut. Kristoff was her best friend and he was her brother figure but sometimes he could just be too overprotective and too paranoid. It really got on her nerve. Elsa sighed and went over to her bed where her bags were placed. The room she picked was pretty large and welcoming. It had one big mirror on one wall and a large dresser on the other. There was one really strong window she had that allowed her to see below the ocean surface. She could see small fish and reflections of the moonlight underwater. It was actually pretty cool. She just hoped she didn't have to see a fucking shark or some shit like that. Her bed was large and in the middle of the room.

There was a large flat screen TV on the wall across from it, and a desk right beside it. She popped one open one of her bags and took out a shirt and shorts, in which she used as pajamas. She stripped herself of her day wear, and put on the nightwear, then she placed her bags on the wooden floor, undid her french braid, ran her fingers through her soft, platinum-blonde hair, and finally, flopped down on her bed. She stared up at the white ceiling, Tomorrow is going to be a long but exciting day. She can only hope Kristoff can get his act together. Other than that, only time can tell what is to come. Hopefully not those bullshit rumors Hans told her about during dinner. Elsa reached over to a lamp on the left side of her bed. She turned off the lamp, and buried herself under the blue blankets of her bed, letting her dreams take over.

~~000~~

"Yes! Interesting isn't it, father?"

"Indeed, Hans it is."

"Who knew, after all these years, it has always been this close!" Hans flopped down onto his king sized bed, holding his phone close to his ears.

"Don't get too excited, boy. You're not done yet."

"I know father."

"Tomorrow, is a big day. I'd suggest you get some rest."

"Of course, father."

"And Hans?"

"Yes?"

"Don't disappointment me."

After that, the call was dead. Hans removed the phone from his ear. That was something he seemed to be good at these days. Being a disappointment to his father. I guess he should be grateful he even has one. Elsa hasn't been as fortunate. He knows she's a strong woman so he's not so worried about how she feels. But her being so strong can actually keep him from prevailing in his quest.

Hans shook his head, sitting up to take off his shirt and his pants. He threw the objects onto the floor and fell back onto the bed. He picked at his sideburns. Tomorrow was going to be a tough day. He meant what he said at that dinner table. Well...kind of. The island is dangerous. In fact, many people who have traveled there never really came back. Search teams traveled to the island to find out what happened, but once again, nobody comes back. Besides, they most likely wouldn't find any bodies if the victims were dead because the animals on the island would've devoured the corpses. Maybe the animals were the killers? No, At least one person would be able to come back if that were the case.

Hans had a plan though. He had brung way more men and women on this trip than anyone who has ever been there. That way, groups would be way bigger than normal, so if anyone was attacked, there would be at least one or two survivors to return to the camp. He'd also make sure to send way more men and weapons out with Elsa, so that she'd be safe. Hans and Kristoff weren't going to be with her. Instead, they were going to be setting up the camp and exploring the land. Elsa was a huntress but Kristoff was a naturalist, so he and Hans would be pretty much stuck together. But that's okay to Hans because he's actually dead set on getting the blonde burly man to like him. Any friend of Elsa's is a friend of his.

Hans sighed and reached over to turn off his bedside lamp. He was ready. Yep, he was prepared for tomorrow. Nothing was going to get in his way of fulfilling his destiny.


	3. Guns Loaded

"Get up, get up, get up!" Elsa shook Kristoff's body as hard as she could. It was hard enough because the blonde man felt like his head was literally snap any second with the way it was rocketing back and forth.

"No! Stop! Ahhhh!" He whined, his body sliding back and forth on the bed, almost falling off the bed each time. But Elsa kept shaking, her temper rising, following the excitement that Kristoff could practically feel radiating off her body.

"But we're here!" Elsa, giving up, flopped her body down atop the elder man's, "We're finally here!"

"I understand that, but I'm still tired. Go on without me." Kristoff mumbled, dozing off again.

"But I can't! I need you! Without you this trip is nothing but a boring field trip through an unprotected and unsupervised zoo"

"You know, you were always so dramatic."

"But you love me," Elsa giggled, "Now rise and shine!"

"I'd rather lie here and stay dull"

"No. Get up!"

"No. Go away."

Elsa groaned, rubbing small circles around her temples. Why is he so difficult? Why can't he just make this trip easier for her. There has to be some reason, and Elsa felt as if she knew exactly what that reason was; and she could be right. However, it would be a very petty reason not to get out of bed. "Is it because you're spending the day with Hans?"

No answer.

"Kristoff, you're going to have to get over this." Still no answer. "Listen, I understand you don't like him, and I know that spending time with him, nonetheless a whole day isn't something you would ever look forward to but you promised me, Kristoff. You promised me when we were younger that you would always make sure I had the times of my lives, and how you'd let nothing keep me from them. So continue that promise and overcome your hatred for the man, just for the week that we're here."

Kristoff groaned, and turned to look at the platinum-blonde sitting on the side of the bed, "You just had to go and make this an emotional moment didn't you?"

"I was always so dramatic," Elsa winked, a smile plastered on her face. She got off the bed and began hopping on the balls of her feet. "Now get your man baby ass up!"

"Alright, alright I'm up." Kristoff hopped out of his bed and strolled over to where his bags were, in the corner of the room. He unzipped one and pulled out a black muscle-T and a brown vest with four pockets. Then he slipped on some camo-knee length kakis, along with brown mid-shin high hunting boots. He grabbed his supply belt, equipped with engineering tools, and lastly his camera which he made sure was ready to use the night before. Elsa was dressed in a similar attire, except in her supply belt she added some knives and ammo. Her rifle was strapped to her back.

Elsa, once again excited, grabbed Kristoff's arm and yanked him out of the room, out of the boat, to the deck of the ship, and down the ramp. Most of the crew was already out of the boat and decided to set up camp on the beach. There were very large tents, large enough for at least thirty people in each, and there were work benches, vehicles, weaponry, dogs, and anything else you would find at the camp of a hunting trip. The large scenery before the two left Elsa in awe. The ocean on the shore glistened in the warm sun's rays, flowing freely back and forth, embracing the dry sand in a warm, wet hug. The bushes, grass, and leaves of the trees swayed in the wind, their sweet rustling echoing in her ears. Birds chirped from the branches, singing a sweet song of welcome to the huntress and her pal.

Elsa couldn't wipe the smile off her face, and it made Kristoff chuckle a bit. The woman, still holding her best friend's arm, continued her run all the way to the main tent, where they would gather for meetings, plans, or preparations. Standing at the entryway of the big green home, was Hans. He was observing some maps that Elsa had found when she first discovered the island's existence. Hearing the said blonde's excited footsteps, he looked up, a small smirk growing onto his face.

"Look who's finally up." He laughed

"It wasn't me!" Elsa whined, "It was Kristoff, he was being difficult."

Kristoff smirked, and Hans chuckled, "Well now that you've finally received the bear from his cave, your group is ready for you." Hans nodded his head in the direction of about six men and four women all secured with guns and the same attire Elsa was in. She squealed.

"Great! This is going to be amazing!" She turned to hug Kristoff before she started over to her group, but she made sure to look over her shoulder to yell back, "And Kristoff, remember the promise!"

"I remember the fucking promise…" Kristoff mumbled. He looked at Hans and Hans stared back. There was an awkward silence between them, and it left Hans uncomfortable. Kristoff narrowed his eyes, and the visual contact was continued for a while before Hans nervously chuckled, and pointed to their vehicles.

"Shall we?" He questioned.

"After you, princy boy." Kristoff replied in a taunting manner

~~000~~

grrrrr grrrrr

The jeeps roared to life and the blonde along with three other hunters entered the first one, four entering the middle one, and three entering the last. The man in the driver's seat of Elsa jeep pressed on the gas pedal and the jeep began to move, the last two following close behind. They entered the forest and drove through the trees, vines, bushes, and tall grass. Elsa kept her eyes peeled for any herds, stray animals, or tracks she could hunt. The ride was pretty quiet save for the sound of the jeeps raging through the forest, until the driver of her jeep spoke up,

"So you're the infamous Elsa Welch." He commented. He was a brunette haired male, with green eyes, and a light beard. In height, he was taller than Elsa, with a small built frame, and looked as if he was in his early twenties.

"Yes?" Elsa answered

"Amazing how famous you can get from killing animals," He laughed, "The name's Alex by the way. Alexander lieven."

"NIce to meet you Alex." Elsa smiled

"I would shake your hand, honored to be working with you and all, but I'd rather not take my hands off the wheel." He joked.

Elsa laughed, "yeah, I understand. So Alex, what brings you here?"

"Everyone here was promised about two thousand dollars each. God knows I need the money."

Elsa was shocked, "Really? Wha...how…"

"The Westerguards are some rich son's of bitches!" Alex smiled, "And since no one wanted to set foot on the 'haunted island', they had to pay us."

"Oh," Elsa nodded. She was rich herself, but she wouldn't pay over fifty people two thousand dollars each! That's like one-hundred thousand dollars! Elsa wanted to continue her mental ranting over money, but then she remembered something else the young man said, "Wait, what do you mean you need the money? Is there something wrong?"

"Oh, no! Well, it's just that my wife...she has cancer." The smile on his face faded slowly, "I can't afford to live in my house, and without this money, I can't save either of us."

Elsa gulped, "How...how old are you?"

"twenty three."

"I'm so sorry."

"It's fine, really."

Elsa went quiet for a second, then she asked, reluctantly, "How is two thousand dollars going to cover for both you?"

"It's not," Alex admitted, "I've decided to go into the military after this. The house is about two-hundred thousand dollars, and to cure my wife it'd be about one million."

"Jesus!" Elsa gasped.

"Ha, yeah." a small smile appeared on Alex's face, "They said she has about six months."

"How are you going to get enough money in time?" Elsa really didn't want to ask these questions, and she really didn't want to make the decision she was going to make if push came to shove, but she was curious, and she was heartbroken for the poor man.

"I don't know," Alex answered, "I guess I just have to have faith."

A moment of silence overcame them for a while until the jeep came to a stop. Elsa looked to her right; she could see a herd of antelope grazing in an open field, and guessed that this is what they were going to hunt first. She got out of the car turned back to Alex. She reached into her pocket and got out a card and held it out in front of the man.

"Here," She said. "When we leave this island, call me, and I'll help you with your financial problems."

Alex was shocked. He reluctantly reached out and grabbed the card, "A-are you serious?"

"Yes." Elsa smiled.

"Thank you!" Alex was on the verge of tears. "Thank you so much."

Elsa only nodded, and walked towards the herd, the rest of the group following behind her. The antelope grazed peacefully, unaware of the dangers that lurk behind them. Elsa and her crew stalked carefully, and slowly into the field behind the herd. When they got close enough she raised one hand in the air, signalling the team to stop, then she flicked her wrist once to the left and once to the right, and the team spread themselves out around the field, covering as much ground as they can without losing sight of one another, so that if the herd broke off they could catch some running their way. Elsa unwrapped her rifle from her shoulder, and lifted the scope to her eye. All she had to do was take the first shot, and the rest of the group would fire right after, and then they'd be feasting tonight! Elsa got sight of a good sized antelope and placed her finger on the trigger. A smile crept onto her face, as she held her breath, and pressed down.

~~000~~

"So...how's-"

"Don't." Kristoff deadpanned, not in the mood to talk to the rich auburn whatsoever.

"Come on! I'm trying to break this horrible silence you've got going on here!" Hans groaned.

Kristoff, camera in hand, snapped a picture of a lynx he discovered sleeping in a thick branch of a tree, "The silence I've started because I don't want to talk to you."

"Why?"

"Because I don't like you." Kristoff replied simply, not sparing the other man a single glance.

"Why?" Hans leaned against a nearby tree.

"I don't trust you."

"And that's because…"

"Because I don't okay! Now stop asking these fucking questions!"

"Come on, Bjorgman! I'm a good guy, you don't have to worry about me! There is literally no bad blood in my family line." Hans assured.

"Are you sure about that Westerguard?" Kristoff narrowed his eyes at the man, "Because I think we both know that's a lie."

Hans was shocked. He cleared his throat and picked at his sideburns, "Well, I mean besides that."

Kristoff didn't reply. Hans sighed, "can we at least make a truce?"

"No."

That man was incorrigible! Hans literally couldn't stand how difficult he was being! So difficult, that the word difficult had to be italicized three times! However he would not give up. Hans watched as the blonde man took photos of pretty much everything he could so that he could study it later. He knew a way to make him less difficult.

"Would Elsa approve of you acting this way?" He smirked.

Kristoff halted, "What did you just say?"

"You heard me." Hans' smirk became a smile, "You made some sort of promise. Are you following it?"

Kristoff glared at him, slowly advancing. Hans' smile began to fade, and he gulped. Bad idea? Kristoff got closer and closer until he was literally a hair length away from Hans. He glared into his eyes, opening his mouth to speak.

Bang! Bang!

Silence.

Bang bang bang! Bang bang! Bang!

Both men stopped and looked around.

"What was that?" Kristoff worried.

"I think it came from the camp." Hans answered.

A noise then sounded from Hans' waist.

"Help! Help! We're being a-"

Hans looked down at his belt and picked up his walkie-talkie, pressed down the button, and spoke into it, "Hello? Is anybody there? Hello?"

"What's going on!?" Kristoff was freaking out now. He wrapped his camera around his shoulder. And started into a direction where he and Hans left the jeep. Hans followed close behind. Their group was scattered throughout the jungle. After they approached the jeep, Hans jumped into the driver's seat and Kristoff into the passenger's.

"Anyone recruited in group seven report back to the camp immediately!" Hans ordered into the walkie-talkie. Each group had a number, that way they could keep track if anyone went missing or if anything happens.

Hans stepped on the gas and the jeep sped towards the camp. Something wasn't right. Something was going down at the camp and they needed to get there fast...or God know what could happen.


	4. Deja Vu

Bang!

Elsa watched as her target fell limp onto the ground. She smiled in victory, the sound of success echoing in the firing of bullets by her comrades. Today was a success, and tomorrow would be even better. The number of antelope decreased as they gallopped their way out of the trap. A total of about nine antelope lie still, and the team of hunters made their way to the bodies, picked them up and struggled to get them onto the jeeps. Elsa watched, the smile still planted on her face.

"Mission accomplished!" She heard someone laugh from behind her. She turned to see Alexander loading his own kill onto the back of their jeep.

"This went better than I expected!" He laughed again, "I can't wait to see what we catch tomorrow."

"Me too." Elsa laughed. She took her seat in the passenger side of the jeep, and waited for Alex to start it. The vehicle began to move.

"Looks like we'll have enough food for everyone tonight." Alex said.

"Yeah," Elsa agreed, "maybe even some leftover for tomorrow?"

"Maybe…" Alex nodded, "But that won't stop us from taking down whatever comes our way next!"

Elsa giggled, "You say that like it could be a bear attack."

"It could!"

"I highly doubt that, Alexander."

Alex laughed, "And if it is?"

Elsa smiled, "Well then I guess I owe you and apology."

"An apology? Pffft! I deserve something cooler than that."

"Well then what would you like, your highness?" Elsa taunted

Alex, with a lopsided smile, replied, "I want to repay you."

Elsa looked confused, "Repay me?"

The jeep jumped as it drove over large branches and rocks. They were only halfway to the camp.

"Yes. For helping me with my problems." He smiled.

Elsa smiled back, feeling proud of herself for giving this man hope when he had none. Normally she wouldn't help anyone. She was kind of an introvert and she was also selfish, however she just couldn't ignore him.

There was a moment of silence before the jeep came to a sudden stop, causing the rest of the team to stop as well. Elsa looked towards Alex, who had a confused look on his face, "What is it?"

"Nothing…" He answered, slightly unsure.

"Then why'd you stop?" Elsa pushed

"I...I didn't…" Alex opened the side door and stepped out of the jeep, "At least...I think I didn't."

He looked down, examining the road under them, and he discovered something that made his blood run cold. Elsa watched as his face paled, and his adam's apple bobbed slowly as he gulped. She exited the car as well, and made her way to him. Other hunters exited as well, but stayed where they were.

"Alex? What is it? Is everything…" Elsa stopped, and stared at the car wide eyed. The tire was busted, but that wasn't what shook her. No. It was what caused it.

There was an arrow in the tire.

~~000~~

Hans leaped off of the jeep and into the center of their camp. He was surprised to see everyone running around in fear. Some were loading their rifles and others grabbing their machetes. What surprised Hans even more was the damage. Tents were smashed and lay in parts on the ground, equipment was spread around, all in random spots in the sand, some even shattered into pieces, or washed off of land and into the water. Hans' breathing began to quicken, and his eyes shined in anger. His face reddened and his hands balled into fists. The first man to run past him was immediately grabbed by the shirt, and pulled forward so that he was face to face with the auburn man.

"You," Hans growled, "Who in the hell did this?"

The man gulped and slowly raised his arm to point towards the entrance to the jungle, "Th-there was an attack, s-sir!"

"By who!?" Hans pulled him closer,

The man opened his mouth to speak, but no words came out of his mouth. His eyes then slid to the right, gazing over Hans' shoulder. Hans could see terror dancing in his eyes. In fact, it made even Hans shiver a little. Wondering what could be causing this man's face to turn such a shade of white, Hans slowly turned his attention behind him. Part of him wanted nothing more than to turn back around and leave without any knowledge of what he was going to see, and another wanted to find out what put all his men in stone-cold fear. Every second felt like eternity as he turned, his heart racing and pounding against his chest, he could practically hear it. His hairs were standing on the back of his neck. He finally caught sight of what disturbed his camp.

Hans released the man in his grip. The man rushed to his feet and away from the threat, screaming in horror. Hans gulped. He did not expect this! He thought setting up camp would be safer and they wouldn't have to worry about any attacks or threats like this one. But he was wrong. And now, he was sure he would lose many men this day...or would he? These sons of bitches may be a danger but Hans knew damn well that he could be danger too if you got on his bad side, and seeing what the intruder did, they were practically on the guest list. He reached down to his belt and pulled his revolver out of his holder. He growled, and raised his weapon above his head and to the air. "What is wrong with you!?" He yelled

"Cowards! All of you!" He looked towards his people, "Why did I hire you!? To run around like headless chickens every time you get a little scared!? We are men! We are stronger than these fuckers! Grab your weapons! Defend our camp! We run this land, not them! TAKE IT BY FORCE!"

Though most of them were in shock, others were inspired, and determined. One woman grabbed her rifle and held it in the air before releasing an excited shout, and she ran towards their rivals. Not a second passed before others followed, and gunshots rang throughout the jungle. Hans smiled, before turning back to his jeep. To his surprise, Kristoff was still there, taking photos of the war before them.

"What are those things? They're big and black but I can't get a good look at them through the thick trees of the jungle!" The blonde man breathed in awe.

Hans opened his mouth to answer, but he was cut off by a pain filled scream. When he turned to face the direction of the noise he was met by one of his men lying dead on the sand, blood staining his face and clothing and an arm missing from his torso. Hans' face drained of color as he watched a big black hand drag the corpse back into the forest. He mumbled something, and Kristoff, traumatized as well, could barely hear it.

"Wh-what?" He gulped.

Hans looked back at him, before shakily cocking his gun, "I said, they're apes."

~~000~~

Alex hesitantly pulled the arrow out and held it out in front of him. He twirled it in his fingers. "What the hell?"

"Where did that come from?" Elsa questioned.

"I don't know." Alex replied. "But I do know that we need to get out of here. I don't feel safe."

"Alex, the wheel is busted."

"We can patch it up good enough for us to get back to camp. We just need some mud, and an air pump."

"We have the latter." Elsa skimmed the ground with her eyes, "But the ground here seems dry."

"Don't worry, I saw a river just a little ways back, there should be some mud there." Alex looked towards the rest of their crew, "I want seven of you with me, and three of you here. Tyler, Lance, and Kanya can stay."

Alex grabbed his gun, along with Elsa's, from the jeep and swung his around his back while handing the blonde woman hers. He then started jogging in the direction of the river, Elsa and the other seven following close behind. The river wasn't that far, so they didn't have to jog much. They came to a clearing where the sparkling blue water could be seen rushing downstream. They walked across the clearing and reached the river. Alex walked over towards the edge and got onto his knees. Elsa came up beside him. She watched him reach down into the water, hands cupped. When his hands came out, there was mud in them.

"So, what exactly are you going to do with it?" Elsa asked him.

"I'm going to place the mud over the hole in the tire, let it dry a little bit, then place the needle of the pump through it and pump air into the tire. Finally, I will smear the mud over the small hole and let it dry fully. That should keep the tire in enough shape, at least until we get to the camp."

He began picking things out of the brown glop. "I'm taking out anything sharp enough to cut the tire. Like shells or zebra mussel."

There was a bit of silence before Alex finally stood up. "Alright, done! Let's-"

Bang

Everyone turned their attention to the sound.

"What was that?" One of the men questioned.

Bang ba-bang bang! Ratatata! Pop!

"Those are rapid gunshots, coming from the camp!" Elsa gasped.

"We have to go!" Alex informed everyone, running back across the clearing and to the trees, "They might be in troub-ACK!"

Everyone froze in horror as they witnessed a sharp wooden object force its way through Alex's neck. The man's eyes widened in horror as his mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. Blood gushed out of his wound and down his neck like a waterfall of red. The wooden weapon was yanked out of his neck, and Alex dropped to the ground, dead, and behind him, a red-headed woman, holding the wooden weapon, now known to be a spear. She wore nothing but what seemed to be a dark green sports bra? And dirtied, baggy, camouflage pants with a brown belt, and bare feet. Her hair was in pigtails, bangs hanging freely over her forehead, and there were white wraps around her lower arms and her face was marked with three brown stripes. One went down the middle of her forehead and ended between her eyes, and two other stripes were beneath her eyes like the eye black that football players wear. And even worse, she was covered in blood. She stared at them, and they stared back, before she backed away into the forest.

Elsa, no longer in shock, immediately ran over to Alex's body. She fell to her knees and started to inspect his body. "Alex!? Wake up!" But he didn't move.

"Come on! Don't do this to me!" She shook him, "You have a wife, remember? She needs you! You can't do this to her!"

Still no answer.

Elsa stared into those lifeless green eyes. Nothing. He was gone. Reluctantly, she reached over, placed her hands over his eyes, and closed them. "SHIT!" She cried. She liked this man. He was kind, caring, and funny. He reminded her of someone she knew and loved. And what about his wife? She needed him! Elsa shook her head, forbidding her tears from falling. She swore to keep that promise she made to him earlier. He will not die for nothing. Elsa looked back up to the group, "We need to get back! Load your guns, get out your melee weapons!"

"But what about that girl! What if she's still in there?" Asked one of the other hunters in her party.

"If that bitch shows her face, I want it blown off." Elsa growled. The amount of anger that she had put fear into the group. But they got their weapons ready nonetheless.

Elsa stood up, and got her own weapons out. She then started exited the clearing and entered the forest, the group following behind her. She stood her ground, weapon at the ready and looking in every direction. She knew that the murderer hadn't left. She was still there, somewhere, watching and waiting. But Elsa didn't stop walking to look for her. They needed to get back to their jeeps, and they were almost there. But then something hit her. A stench. It smelled of oil and gas mixed together. Elsa's blood ran cold. She sped up, not caring if the group was with her or not. She exited the trees and got back onto the road. Apparently the group was with her the whole time because she could hear the gasps and gags of disgust at the sight before them. Their jeeps were completely destroyed, oil leaking everywhere, glass shattered, gas polluting the air, and tires popped. The hoods of the cars were open and engines were destroyed. But that wasn't what had gave them the urge to puke their guts out. Tyler, Lance, Kanya. Three brave young hunters whose only job was to look after some fucking vehicles not only failed to do so, but died failing. Their blood was splattered everywhere, throats sliced, bodies impaled. Lance even had a hole in his head. Elsa could feel her eye twitching. THAT FUCKING-

Snap.

Everyone jumped and turned their attention towards the sound. There, once again stood the same girl.

BITCH!

Elsa was the first to immediately grab her gun and point it at the girl. She pulled the trigger, but the girl dodged and leaped behind some bushes. Damn she's quick! Elsa thought. She kept herself ready to shoot if she saw the girl again. Her eyes skimmed the whole area, not letting a spot go unguarded. However...that did jack shit. One of the hunters let out an aggravated scream.

"Ugh! I'm tired of this shit!" He started sprinting down the path towards the camp; but, he didn't get very far when the jungle girl leaped out of the bushes and in one swift motion grabbed his neck and twisted it. A snap sounded through the air and the man dropped to the ground. The girl once again leaped out of sight and into the forest.

"Fuck!" Elsa screamed. "Open fire!" Elsa and the remaining six began blindly shooting in every direction. But one by one they didn't make it. One man was yanked into the bushes, a blood curling scream was released but immediately became a gargle. Five. Bullets flew in that direction. A vine came down from a tree so fast that it wrapped around a woman's neck and yanked her upwards. Her neck was snapped instantly. Four. Bullets changed direction. A spear came flying out of nowhere and impaled a man in the eye. He dropped to the ground, blood gushing everywhere. Three. Bullets begun to slow. The same vine flew into view, wrapping itself around a man's feet. His eyes widened, and he begun firing in the direction of the rope, but the rope yanked at his feet, causing him to fall backwards and fire into the sky. The rope dragged him into the forest and his screams echoed through the air. Two. The bullets were out. Elsa and a Woman stood alone, terrified.

"Don't worry!" Elsa assured, "I still have a pistol! We can-"

Elsa was cut off by the sound of gargling. She turned around, but only to see the woman with a spear through her neck. Elsa's heart began racing. The spear was yanked out of her neck and the woman fell to the ground. Behind her stood the jungle girl.

"Son of a bitch!" Elsa screamed as she pointed her pistol at the murderer, but she only grabbed Elsa's wrist and twisted it. Elsa let out a scream of agony as she dropped the gun. She was then shoved backwards onto her ass and against a tree. The girl bent down onto one knee and grabbed Elsa's face, making it face her. She observed Elsa, and as she did that, Elsa observed her. Having a better look up close, she noticed a couple of things she hadn't noticed before when she first saw her. This girl's cheeks were completely covered with freckles, from one side, across the bridge of her button nose and to the other. In fact, it wasn't just her face but her arms and collarbone too. It kind of made Elsa wonder what else was covered in freckles. She also noticed how green the girl's eyes were, and the slight spark of curiosity that resided in them. Another thing was the white stripe in her hair. Her lips were small and pink, and agape in wonder. Her head tilted to the side in the most adorable manner. Suddenly she backed away, and there was a loud scream that sounded, but it wasn't human. It was more like...a monkey? The jungle girl grabbed Elsa's arm and yanked her to her feet. Elsa stumbled a bit before backing away from the young killer. The girl looked Elsa straight into her eyes.

"Go."

And then she vanished.

Elsa gulped, shaking in shock as she stared blankly at the bloody bodies around her. They're dead. They're all dead. And it's all her fault. She fought a battle she was losing horribly, and instead of retreating, she fought. It's all her fault.

~~000~~

They're dying. They're all dying, and it's all his fault. He's fighting a battle that he is losing horribly and instead of retreating, he decided to fight. And now, tons of his men are dead. It's all his fault. Well..he can still retreat, but he is too frozen to even move. Damn it! Snap out of it! Why!? Why can he only watch! There were bodies everywhere, blood covering the sand, and bodies ripped apart and mangled! He has to move! He has to go! It was then when he finally got the strength to do so. He shook his head and ran towards Kristoff who was cowering behind a jeep. He grabbed the blonde man and forced him to his feet. "Head to the boat! Now!" Hans shoved a pistol into the man's arms.

"What!?" Kristoff yelped, "What about Elsa!? Her group isn't back yet!"

"We don't have time to wait for them!" Hans growled. He began shoving Kristoff towards the shore.

"We can't leave her behind on this island!"

"We have no choice!" Hans yelled back at him, "Everyone! Retreat!"

Those who heard him did exactly that, screaming it out themselves so that anyone who hadn't heard him got the memo.

"No! I'm not leaving Elsa!" Kristoff shoved Hans, attempting to stand his ground.

"God damn it, Bjorgman!" Hans grabbed his rifle, and turned it so that the butt was facing Kristoff, "I'm sorry but you leave me no choice!"

He slammed the butt into Kristoff's head, causing him to drop to the ground, out cold. Hans, with all the strength he could muster, pulled Kristoff over his shoulder, and ran towards to the ship. He ran up the bridge just as they were pulling it up. Once he reached the deck, he lowered Kristoff onto the floor and commanded two hunters to put him in his room, then he urged them to send the boat out into sea.

Hans looked out into their camp, and he could see the apes glaring out at them, as if a warning not to come back. It confused him a little. Normally any animal would at least attempt to attack them if they were running away. However, it was like they were trained. They didn't move at all, as if all they wanted to do was scare them. He shook his head. At least they were safe. He lost a lot of men today, he couldn't lose anymore. He sighed. If he had to admit it, he completely regrets leaving Elsa out there. She won't survive out there for long with those things roaming around. If anything happened to her, Hans would never forgive himself. "Just stay strong, Elsa." He sighed once more. He turned away from the side of the ship and began his way to his room. "We'll be back, with more men and weapons. I will save you."

~~000~~

Elsa ran and ran, even though she couldn't feel her lungs, she kept running. She tried so hard to forget everything she just saw so that she'd have enough strength to get to the camp. She shoved through the branches and vines of the jungle. She pushed through the bushes and squeezed through the trees. She was almost there when something jumped in front of her. In shock, she stumbled backwards and fell onto her back, accidentally cutting herself on something sharp. Probably a rock? All she knew was that it hurt and was probably a deep wound. She looked up to see what had interrupted her mission. She really wishes she hadn't done that. Before her stood an ape, or gorilla...she really wasn't good with monkeys. But it was big, and bared its sharp teeth, it's hazel eyes shining in anger. Elsa nearly cried. This is it, this is how she died, and she was terrified. But then the ape did something she didn't expect...it leaped over her, and left? Maybe it wasn't hungry…

Well it didn't matter. She was alive at least. Elsa got up, and looked back. When she didn't see anything, she looked down to examine her arm. It was bleeding, a lot. She silently cursed herself. Remembering her quest, she continued onwards, exiting the jungle and entering the beach where there camp was set up. She was met; however, with another shocking sight. Bodies, mangled and torn apart everywhere. Blood, splattered everywhere. Death, everywhere. So many people, dead. There was even one or two big black bodies lying dead on the ground. Immediately, Elsa knew they were ape bodies...or gorillas. Elsa assumed this was why she heard the gunshots. They were attacked.

Elsa wanted to scream! She wanted to vomit, and she also wanted to cry. And that's exactly what she did. She lurched over and released any meal she had from earlier out of her stomach. Wiping her mouth, she fell backwards and began to sob. Soon enough sobs turned into cries and cries turned into screams. She lost everything. What was supposed to be an amazing adventure and hunt, became a war zone. People were dead. Alex was dead. She was dead. On the inside mostly. She cried and cried and cried until she was sure she was out of tears. Sniffing now, she sat up. It was then that she realized something. The boat. It was gone. She knew what that meant. It meant they left her. And it meant that they've abandoned her. Elsa closed her eyes, hoping that if she opened them, this would all turn out to be a dream. She began to count to ten.

'one'

It's not fair!

'two'

This was supposed to be fun!

'three'

Kristoff, Hans, Alex…

'Four'

They're all gone!

'Five'

She'll never see them again?

It was when Elsa reached ten and opened her eye that she realized…

This was no dream…

She was trapped here…

On this island…

Alone…


	5. Survival of the Fittest

Hans leaned back in his chair, roughly running his hands through his hair. He still couldn't believe this happening. He had a plan! But it doesn't matter now, huh? He retreated out of the island and there wasn't any going back; well, at least if he didn't want to die. Thus, he sits here in his chair, in his office by his desk, cursing himself for the actions he chose to take, resulting in the loss of more than twenty lives. Not only that, but the abandonment of his best friend since childhood.

Elsa.

He remembers the time they first met. He was twelve, she was eleven, and Kristoff was twelve as well. He was playing in the sand, building a sandcastle at one of his favorite beaches in Norway. One brother of his, out of the twelve, sixteen year old Liam, the tenth born, walked over to Hans. His shadow covered the young auburn boy's body, and his blue eyes shined with anger and amusement. With a howl, he brung his foot back and kicked hard, knocking over Hans' castle.

Hans squeaked, throwing his hands in front of his face to block the sand from entering his eyes. When he felt is was safe, he looked up to see his brother standing before him, his body blocking the sun and still casting that large shadow over Hans' small frame. Liam smirked, then laughed, pointing at the younger boy.

"Look at Hans! He was scared!" He laughed some more.

"That's not funny, Liam!" Hans cried, "I worked hard on that sandcastle!"

"So? I don't care." Liam placed his bare foot on Hans' left shoulder and kicked him to the ground. Hans fell backwards, but immediately after, he jumped to his feet.

"Leave me alone!" Hans growled.

"Or what?" Liam stepped closer, towering over the younger boy, "You'd be a damn fool to even try to do something."

"I could say the same about you." An icy, feminine voice came from beside them.

The boys glanced over. Shocked eyes met electric blue. A small, pale, platinum-blonde haired girl stood firm in the sand beside a slightly older and taller boy with unmanly-blonde hair, and a dog. Liam took a second to scan them, his eyes travelling down their bodies, and back up. A small smile crept onto his face and grew slowly until he began to laugh. He clutched at his stomach and his upper body dived forward. He laughed for a while, shaking his head in amusement and disbelief. when he finally stopped, he looked up and said to them, "Get out of here, before you get yourselves hurt." He looked towards the girl, "Especially the pretty lady."

She was unfazed. The boy; however, took a step forward, "Is that a threat?"

"Yes." Liam smirked.

The boy balled up his fists and took another step forward before a gentle, cold hand placed itself onto his bare chest. The girl shook her head at her friend, "Don't Kristoff, he's not worth your energy."

Kristoff's mouth dropped, "But Elsa-"

The girl, Elsa, shushed him again, "I said he wasn't worth your energy."

Kristoff stood there, confused. Slowly, but surely; however, he began to get it. He smiled and glanced towards the Liam kid, then looked towards his dog who sat their happily panting with its tongue hanging out of his mouth as if it didn't have a single worry in the world.

"Sven," Kristoff called.

The dog looked up at its owner.

"Get'm"

The dog stood up abruptly, letting out one single bark before it charged at Liam.

Liam let out a scream of terror, and bolted away from the three kids towards his parents whilst calling for help, Sven chasing after him.

Hans laughed and turned his attention to his two saviors. "Thank you! But, who are you?"

"I'm Elsa." Elsa introduced herself.

"Kristoff's the name!" Kristoff smiled.

Hans walked over to them until he was about a foot away from the two, "I'm Hans. Why'd you help me?"

"I didn't want to." Kristoff huffed, "A man should be able to fend for himself. If anything I should be saving more damsels in distress!"

Elsa shook her head, "more?"

"Yeah, like when I save you." He informed.

"But you didn't save me," Elsa deadpanned, "I got stuck in a pile of snow and you slipped on ice, so I managed to get out and nursed your bruised knee back to health."

Kristoff blushed, "I tried to save you…"

Elsa turned her attention back to Hans before giving him a small smile, "I saw him messing with you, and you at a disadvantage, so I came to help."

"Yeah," Kristoff laughed, "you looked like a pussy!"

Hans looked down at his feet, "My dad says it's not good to curse, and your parents probably would agree..."

"I don't give a-"

"Kristoff." Elsa warned. The blonde boy clamped his mouth shut.

"We don't have parents."

Hans gasped, "Sorry! I didn't mean- I didn't,"

"It's fine." Elsa smiled. She glanced in the direction that the boy from earlier had ran, then back at Hans. "You can hang out with us for a while."

"W-what? Really?" Hans perked up. No one has ever asked him to hang out with them. In fact he didn't have any friends besides his loyal dog Sitron. But here he was, before two people who actually wanted to spend their precious time with him. It made him want to cry. Happy tears of course.

"Yes. We were just about to have a swimming contest if you want to join us?" Elsa waved him over as she walked towards the lake, Kristoff following behind her.

Hans nodded enthusiastically and ran after his new friends.

He remembers that day like the back of his hand. They were his very first best friends...well, Elsa was. Kristoff couldn't stand him even back then. Speaking of Kristoff, that man hasn't come out of his room since they got on this boat. Hans shook his head and pushed his feet forward pushing the chair backwards so that he could stand up. He got off his butt and walked over to his door, exiting the room. He knew that Kristoff loved Elsa like a sister, and that losing her had took a large toll on him. The maids of the ship brought the man food three times today, and three times he refused to eat it. With Kristoff acting this way, there was no way in hell he wanted to see Hans' face. In fact he'd probably bash it in on sight...but that wasn't going to stop the auburn haired man from attempting to talk to him. Hans stopped walking. Looking up at the bronze plate screwed to the door with the numbers 215 on it. This was Kristoff's room. It was quiet. But what was he expecting when he arrived here? Hans lifts his hands to knock on the oak wood door. Tap tap tap….

…

…

…

Nothing.

Hans shook his head in disappointment. "Kristoff! Hey, it's me! Open the door!"

There was no reply. Not a single sound came from the other side of that door. Hans knocked again, "Look I know you're not very fond of me, but I need to talk to you!"

Once again, nothing.

Fuck it. "What would Elsa think about this? Would Elsa appreciate this rude behavior-"

The door swung open and a fist came launching out of nowhere, smacking Hans straight in the nose. There was a loud crunch and a deafening cry of pain. Tears stung at Hans' eyes, as he clutched his face. He could feel a warm liquid trickling down his nose and spreading around his fingers. Through watery eyes he glared at the blonde burly asshole before him. "WHAT THE FUCK, KRISTOFF!?"

"DON'T YOU DARE! DON'T YOU DARE USE HER NAME! YOU DON'T DESERVE TO AFTER WHAT YOU DID!"

"Oh, and what exactly did I do Kristoff!?" Hans growled. He honestly came here talk to Kristoff and have a good time, but he's honestly feeling so attacked right now. And normally when he's attacked, he defends himself. "What exactly did I do that is so evil, that you had to break my fucking nose!"

"You know what you did! You left Elsa behind! You left her with those damn apes! May I remind you how they were ripping people apart!?"

"And they would've kept ripping people apart if i would've stayed there!"

"I wouldn't mind risking people's lives if it meant keeping Elsa's!"

"Well I would! And I'm pretty sure Elsa wouldn't mind risking herself for others either!"

Wham!

Another punch.

Hans lightly touched the side of his cheek, immediately ripping his hand away and hissing at the sudden, stinging pain it drew. He glared at Kristoff, rising to his feet from the position he didn't even know he was in. They held eye contact for a little bit. Hans then balled up his fist and swung it hard towards Kristoff's face, knocking the man back into his room. Hans stepped inside as well and slammed the door shut behind him. He then reached down and grabbed Kristoff by the shirt, pulling him up onto his feet; However, Kristoff had recovered by then and shoved Hans back into the door. He swung at him, rage bursting through his veins. Hans ducked, dodging the hit by a hair. He then shoved himself into Kristoff's stomach and knocked the man onto the floor. He got on top of the blonde and started swinging at his face. Two punches in, Kristoff, nose bleeding and lip busted, grabbed Hans' hand and pushed off of his free shoulder, rolling the both of them over. Kristoff was now on top. He placed both of his hands firmly on Hans' neck and placed all of his weight into them. Hans grabbed at his wrists, trying his hardest to free himself and get some air before he choked to death. Panicking, he lifted his knee hard and fast, and right into Kristoff's groin. Kristoff gasped, falling off of the auburn man and onto the floor, clutching between his legs. Hans immediately got up and backed up into a corner, glaring at the forever damaged man while also trying to catch his breath.

"Stop...that's...enough," Hans coughed.

Kristoff stood up, struggling and trying his hardest to ignore the pain between his legs. "No."

"Yes." Hans pleaded. "We needn't do this. Look, i'm sorry, okay?"

Kristoff glared at him.

"Yes, I abandoned Elsa on that island. But I had no choice. We didn't know if she was already dead or not and we needed to get out of there alive." Hans watched as Kristoff wiped the blood from his lips and nose. "Elsa was my friend too. You think I wanted to leave her there?"

"She's strong! She's alive! We could've saved her!"

"If that is so then we can still go back. We can find her. But in order to do that, this?" Hans gestured to the both of them, "This needs to stop."

Kristoff, still catching his own breath, stood silent for a second. He shook his head, standing straight and holding his hand out. Hans glanced at it, then at Kristoff, and smiled. He reached out and shook his hand.

Kristoff let go and looked Hans straight in the eye. "I still don't trust you though."

Hans laughed as he walked towards the door, "That's acceptable." He opened it and walked out, but not before calling back, "Meet me for dinner, after we hold the funerals of the ones we lost. We have to make a plan."

As he continued walking, he reached up and touched his nose, hissing at the sudden pain it drew. He would have to get himself fixed up before dinner. Minus well send a nurse to Kristoff's room as well.

~~000~~

Tears were being shed. Farewells were bid to those who were lost in the battle. Hans and Kristoff sat at their table in the dining hall, a man stood on a small stage that was used for music and performances for entertainment to share a couple of words for them. So the dining hall was quiet, save for that man, and thankfully no one had questioned neither Hans or Kristoff when they entered the room bandaged and bruised. Food was served but no one really ate. No one was really hungry. How could they feast when they were being reminded of the bloody battle from earlier?

"-and we will never forget their bravery, their sheer determination, their loyalty, and honesty. So today, we will say goodbye to our heroes, and our fallen soldiers. Mandy Linens, Kyle Torogh, Amitogh Sarthy, Daniel Kevins, Alexander Lieven-"

"You told him not to mention Elsa, right?" Kristoff asked Hans who sat right beside him. Both men were dressed in black, as were all the others who attended this "funeral" slash dinner. There were no bodies of course, but these were still dead people in which they had to say their final goodbyes to.

"Yeah." Hans whispered an answer.

"Good."

Hans looked at Kristoff through the corner of his eye. He was getting upset again. It makes Hans feels as if Kristoff forces himself to believe Elsa was okay. Almost as if part of him believed she was dead, and he was set on fighting that side. He didn't blame him of course. What type of friend would he be if he gave up on her? Automatically thought, 'oh well, she's dead.' After she goes missing? No. Hans respected that part of the blonde man. Trying his hardest to believe something that had little chance of being true.

"We wish them good luck in the afterlife. For they have served us greatly on this trip and we will never forget them. Nor will their families. Their names will be remembered for years to come as brave soldiers who not only traveled to that dangerous island for a great adventure, but stood their ground and fought to their death. And for that, we shall hold them in our hearts. Does anyone have anything to say?"

Hans stood up. "I do."

"Mr. Westerguard! Of course."

Hans looked towards his remaining team of hunters, "Listen up. I know this is probably not something you want to hear, definitely not at his moment. But unfortunately...we are going back to that island-"

Whines, gasps, and various other sounds of anger, annoyance, and fear were heard by the crowd.

Hans held his hand up, silencing them immediately, "Enough. We have too. One of our greatest allies and an important person on this trip was left there in our haste to retreat. Elsa Welch."

"How do you know she's not dead?" A man from the crowed questioned.

Immediately Kristoff's eyes filled with rage and he jumped up, marching over to where the voice could be heard from, ignoring Hans' warning and attempts to calm him. "Who the hell said that!?" He growled searching the section of the voice.

A man, indian, and no older than twenty-five, stood up himself. "I did. You can't send everyone else to their deaths because your girlfriend is back there, probably not even alive! There's not even enough of us to send there anyways!"

Kristoff was silent. He stared the man down, his eyes showing nothing but hatred and disgust. His hand shot out like a rocket, grabbing the man by the throat and yanking him forwards, "I don't give a damn about you and your concerns. You've been told to go back so you will go back! And if I hear you talk negatively about Elsa again, I will personally feed you to those apes!"

"Bull shit!" The man shoved Kristoff back and rubbed his throat. "I'm not doin' shit for you!"

Before Kristoff could say or do anything, Hans stepped in, "That's enough! Kristoff sit down, and Amogh, hear me out."

The two men, reluctantly, backed away from each other and followed their orders.

"Now," Hans continued, "Obviously we're not going to march in there unprepared and try to fight off those beasts. First, we're going to get new recruits, doubled the amount we had last time. Then, we are going to get better weapons and ammunition, along with vehicles and supplies. Next, we will go back to the uncharted island and search for Elsa. And we will find her."

Hans looked Kristoff in the eye as he said that, earning a nod of approval and thanks from the man. "And finally, I plan to do something not only to get back at those animals for what they did to us, but to rid of that wretched island once and for all!"

"What do you mean get rid of it? That forest is supposed to be a tourist site! It-" The man named Amogh stood up once again

"It hasn't been visited by tourists for years." Hans cut him off. "So, it will have to make money some other way…we're going to turn it into a civilized area. Destroy every ounce of the jungle and replace it with buildings, jobs, homes, etcetera. Besides, Cape Town is largely populated anyway. So we'd be hitting two birds with one stone. Gentlemen, let us not only save our ally from that treacherous jungle but to avenge our brothers as well! Those who are with me, rise out of your seats and holler!"

Men and women rose and yelled in agreement. Few others, counting Amogh, sat angry and disgusted. But majority had voted.

Hans smiled in victory.

~~000~~

"We're actually doing this."

"Yup. You heard the plan. Now we just need to find out how to get reinforcements." Hans informed his temporary blonde companion.

"How is that going to be a problem?" Kristoff questioned, running his fingers along the walls of the hallway as they walked back to his room from the cafeteria, and admiring the golden wallpaper that was used for it.

"Well, obviously we need to tell them why we need the reinforcements, and I highly doubt many people will want to help after hearing how half my team was slaughtered by apes." Hans rolled his eyes.

"Just say another speech and get them motivated like you did today."

"Kristoff, you don't understand. It really isn't just that simple." Hans pinched the bridge of his nose. They stopped walking, having come across the blonde man's room already.

"Well it has to be. Or else how are we going to save Elsa?" Kristoff asked quietly.

"Don't worry about that. In the meantime, we are going to need to teach you how to use a gun."

"What?" Kristoff rose his hands before his chest in a fearful manner, backing slowly from the other man, "W-why!?"

"Because you will be there with us, and you need to learn how to protect yourself!"

"B-but I'm not a killer! Whether it's an animal or a person, I can't hurt a living thing!"

"Well you better start. You're training starts tomorrow. If we can turn your loving Sven into an attack dog it shouldn't be hard to do the same to you."

Kristoff narrowed his eyes, "I'm sorry. You did what to sven?"

"Nothing. Nevermind." Hans shook his head, "Look, you're going to have to learn how to use a gun or we'll drop you off at the docks and continue this mission without you. We can't have you slowing us down."

Kristoff went silent. Then he sighed, turning to his room door and opening it. He stepped inside and turned around to face Hans. "Fine. I'll do it."

"Good." Hans smiled, and turned around to walk back to his own territory before he was stopped.

"Hans."

Not fully turning around, he tilted his head in Kristoff's direction to let him know he had his attention.

"...thank you." Then the door shut.

Hans faced forward once more and continued to his room. Yes, he was doing this for Elsa, for himself, and for Kristoff. Why wouldn't he help his friends? That's the whole point for going to save her. However, the attempt on transforming the island...that's a whole 'nother story. He had to do that. He had no choice. If he wanted to prove that he had use, that he could redeem himself. Then he'd have to destroy every bit of green on that land.

…

however…

That was only part of it.


	6. Dickinson's Kestral

Elsa trudged through the thick forest plants which were practically gripping and tangling around her ankles with every step. She was lost. She had no idea where she was going. And she was hungry. So hungry, that if she saw any moving, living, organism, she'd probably leap on it like a tiger. Not only that, but there was an even bigger problem that she couldn't get off her mind. Why? Why did they leave her? They didn't search for her or anything.

Could she blame them? Probably not. She saw it. She saw the destruction. The bodies. The blood. Something went down and it drove them from the island. Forced them to abandon her. But what happened? Was it...that girl? The one who cruelly took down her whole team. Murdered them all in cold blood.

Elsa's eyes watered. She truly lost everyone. And she was stuck here; probably for the rest of her life. She was on the verge of crying when a snap sounded from behind her. Alerted, Elsa spun on her heel, swiftly yanking the rifle she still maintained from her shoulder and pointing it towards the noise. To be honest she was terrified. Like, her hands were fucking shaking. She stared intently in the direction of the sound. Her finger was on the trigger. She was ready. Scared. But ready.

Suddenly, a creature jumped out of the darkness causing Elsa to reflexively pull the trigger. With a loud bang the body fell limp to the ground. Elsa let out a shaky breath, more relieved than shocked, upon seeing that the ever so scary creature, was non other than a doe. Slowly, she lowered her gun, still staring intensely at the dead creature. Her mouth watered, the realization of her ever so irritating hunger coming to reality. Elsa threw the rifle over her shoulder and launched herself at the animal, lifting it with some unknown strength; probably some adrenaline. Elsa trudged on, hoping to find a clearing where she could settle down. Glancing up at the sky, she could see the sun was now on a descending route from the sky. She grumbled as she noticed it would be dark soon, and if she didn't find somewhere quick, she'd be walking in complete darkness, and that's nothing she would want seeing as though she was still in a jungle; nonetheless an island with no civilization whatsoever. Upon lowering her eyes from the view of the sky, they landed on something else. A bird. No, a falcon. A Dickinsons Kestral to be exact. The white feathers of its chest puffed out in a threatening manner. If that bird was a cat, it would be hissing right now. It's black, yellow rimmed eyes glared daggers into Elsa as it's gray wings stretched out and it flew away. Elsa stared after it for a while, confusion etched into her as she slowly began to continue her journey.

The only thing that remained in her brain was one single word. A word her mind repeated like a prayer.

Survive.

~~000~~

"Kristoff, it really isn't this difficult…"

"..."

"Just pull the trigger."

"..."

"It's not even a living thing."

"..."

"It's a dummy...Kristoff. A fucking dum-"

"I know that!" Kristoff yelled irritably at the redheaded man, "I fucking Know that alright!"

Hans shook his head, "Then why aren't you pulling the trigger."

"I…" Kristoff turned his attention back to the dummy. Hans was right. It wasn't even living but he couldn't shoot. Maybe it was the point behind it. The fact that if he pulled the trigger, he'd be pulling it with the intent to kill. If he pulled the trigger, the bullet that would be rocketing out of it would represent how fast his morals would have to change.

Hans sighed, "Kristoff, do you know why man made weapons?"

"To kill people? I mean, someone wanted to kill somebody, or at least hurt them."

"No, that's what weapons are used for but that isn't why they are made." Hans pulled his own pistol from his waistband, "They were made to hunt and protect. Animals were always killers, Kristoff. And it isn't wrong to kill a killer. That's why in this world, it's either kill or be killed Kristoff. So if Elsa is alive, she won't be for long unless you grow some balls."

Hans lifted the gun and pointed it at the dummy, pulling the trigger and shooting one fatal shot to the dummy's forehead. Then he placed the gun back into his waistband, giving Kristoff a mixture of a pitiful and serious look. "So what're you going to do?"

Kristoff stared blankly at the dummy. It took around three minutes before he lifted his gun and aimed at the hay made man. With a deep breath, he pulled the trigger. Time seemed to slow as the bullet made it's way to the target. Kristoff watched wide eyed as it embedded itself between the the dummy's invisible eyes. He was so shocked, he didn't even feel Hans giving him a pat on the back.

"I expected such from a hunter's son."

Bulda and Cliff. His parents. Well, adoptive parents. They would've probably been proud of him seeing as though they were hunters themselves. Elsa's father and his parents worked together for a long time. Kristoff snapped out of his haze and turned his attention back to Hans, who was retreating back inside the ship. Kristoff took one more glance at the dummy, before smiling, and heading back inside as well.

~~000~~

Elsa's mouth watered as she watched the meat of the doe roast on the stick over the fire. Thank god her father taught her all the necessary information on survival. Other wise she'd be eating raw deer flesh right now. As the meat cooked, Elsa analyzed her surroundings, deciding it was best to distract herself from her still roaring hunger. It wasn't a big area, but a small clearing surrounded by thick trees leading back into the darkness of the jungle, and a giant cliff behind her. Now she could defend herself if anything popped up seeing as though nothing can come up behind her. There was a small stream of water flowing past her, the doe's corpse to her right, the sun setting and moon rising, and a group of bushes beside her. However, there was one feature that stood out to her. On the stone wall beside her, there were words carved into it, along with two crosses. The cackling of the fire beneath her soothed her greatly from the shiver going up her spine from the sight it. It kind of looked like a giant gravestone.

Elsa winced as a sudden pain shot through her leg. She looked down. Her pants were darkened with a warm liquid. Elsa carefully reached down with her free hand and pulled up her pants leg as far as it would go. She winced again upon noticing the damage. There was a deep gash in the side of her calf, blood oozing from the wound. There was another wave of pain and Elsa hissed, nearly dropping her food into the fire. She remembered the earlier events of the ape that leaped in front of her when she was making her way back to the beach after the attack by the girl, when she fell back onto a rock or something. Elsa grumbled cursing herself for not noticing the situation sooner. She reached over to her busy arm, ripping some cloth from her sleeve, the rip going from her wrist to the crook of her elbow. Elsa placed the meat on the stick carefully against the stone wall standing up so it didn't fall into the dirt as she wrapped the long cloth tightly against her wound. She new that wouldn't stop the bleeding for long, but it was enough to keep her going.

A large growl sounded, making Elsa jump. She sighed in relief upon finding out it was only her stomach. Elsa looked down at her meal. It was perfectly cooked, the meat browned and the skin even darker. Elsa's mouth began to water once more as she grabbed the stick and brang the meat up to her mouth. She took a giant bite out of the roasted flesh and hummed in satisfaction. It wasn't the best of meals, but seeing how hungry she was, she couldn't care less. Elsa managed to devour the meat in only a matter of seconds, leaning her head against the giant wall behind her and patting her stomach with affection. A smile spread across her lips as she closed her eyes. She could use a nap….but it wouldn't be smart to sleep in the open. Letting out a disappointed sigh, Elsa reopened her eyes only to met with a bone chilling sight. At least it was for her. Right before her, perched on a branch of a tree, sat the Dickinson's Kestral. In other words, the white falcon. It's yellow rimmed, blue eyes glaring into Elsa's soul. Elsa gulped, and slowly reached for the rifle that she placed beside her on the ground. The bird flexed its wings in a threatening manner. Elsa didn't look away though. As soon as her hand was fully on the rifle, the bird leaped into action, shooting towards her, Elsa yelped in surprise as a sharp sting shot across her cheek. She reached up to her face, feeling the blood drip from the scratches engraved by the bird. Elsa growled, picking her rifle up and aiming at the damn creature. She was just about to pull the trigger when a sharp wooden staff shot out from the darkness of the jungle trees, shocking Elsa and knocking the gun out of her hand. Elsa gulped, turning her attention to where the weapon came from. Coming out of the trees, was a familiar head of red hair in pigtails.

The girl!

She stared Elsa down, before glancing over to the dead doe on the ground beside the blonde. The girl's face paled a bit, running over to the dead creature. She observed it for what seemed to be a minute, eyes glued onto where Elsa tore the meat from, which was the whole leg. A terrifying fire lit up in her eyes. She slowly, and menacingly made her way over to Elsa. Elsa reached for her rifle again, almost touching it when a hand grabbed her by her shirt and threw her sideways, further away from her main source of defense. The girl grabbed Elsa's gun. Eyeing it carefully with a look of distaste before holding both ends and slamming it against her knee with a horrible snap. Elsa yelped, watching as the wood and metal of her prized possession scattered all over the grassy terrain. When she snapped out of her minute of mourning, she noticed the girl picking up her sharp wooden staff. Upon picking the staff up, the girl paused, staring intently at the carvings on the stone wall. After a minute she turned her attention to the blonde again, walking over to Elsa, the sharp end of the stick pointing at her. Elsa reached for the machete in her utility belt in which she used to cut the let off the dear. She stood up, and charged at the redhead, weapon in hand when the girl merely stepped sideways and struck Elsa hard in the stomach with the bottom of her staff. Elsa's eyes widened in pain as the wind was knocked out of her and she doubled over onto her hands and knees, her weapon falling to the ground with a muffled clang. The girl kicked the blade to the side as she pressed the sharp end of the staff to Elsa's neck. Elsa felt tears coming to her eyes as she went over how painful her death would be. The girl pulled the staff back, ready to strike; the asshole falcon, who had been watching the whole charade, landing on her shoulder. A single tear fell down Elsa's cheek, causing a slight sting on the mark that the bird left. Then, the girl froze. She stared at Elsa, her eyes no longer hard and menacing, but confused and pitiful. She cocked her head slightly, in what Elsa would call adorable if she wasn't terrified right now, before looking over to the bird, in which Elsa had just realized was most likely her companion. They seemed to hold each other's gaze for a while, before the girl turned her attention back to Elsa. Elsa was confused at this moment, and Even more confused when the girl rotated her staff vertically in a 180 degree turn. The bottom of the stick now facing Elsa. The girl pulled the staff back, before shoving it forward.

Everything, went black.


	7. Fear the Future

*ring ring*

*ring ring*

"Father, it's you."

"Hans"

"I...what are you calling for? Is there any news?"

"Yes, actually. I wanted to discuss the reinforcements."

"Oh, that great. They're actually on their way."

"I know, I'm sending some of my own."

"...what?"

"You heard me. I don't like to repeat myself."

"Of...course, father."

"How is the plan coming along?"

"They're...coming."

"They're...coming?"

"The search for Elsa is going to be difficult, making the plan-"

"Did i ask about Elsa? How is my plan?"

"It's in the works, father."

*silence*

"...Hans?"

"Yes, father?"

"Do not screw this up."

*click*

He hung up.

Hans sighed and placed the phone down. He rose from his seat and ran a hand through his hair. This was proving to be more difficult than it had to be. His father….all he wanted was his trust. He was the least lucky of his twelve older brothers. Kyle, who is 30, red haired and blue eyes, now lives in new york as a writer with two sons and one daughter as well as a wife. James and Darwin, the twins, 28 with blonde hair and green eyes, are both running their own Architectural Business. The only difference between them is the beauty mark Darwin inherited from their mother. Gregory, Greg, and Gregson, the triplets, 27. Greg having passed away being a drunk bastard. Gregson with red hair and teal eyes, a creator for his older brothers' business, and Gregory with dyed brown hair and green eyes….nowhere to be found. Alex, 26, hair dyed white, eyes blue, was the emo of the group. He went to fulfil his dream as a "rock star". He could sing...but that's about it. He had few talented friends. Mich, 25, blonde, teal galaxy eyes. He was in a mental hospital. Andy, 24, dyed black, spiky hair, and Green eyes with glasses. He was the smart one of the family. All A's, and now a scientist. Unfortunately for him, he is deaf. Liam, 23, blonde, long, hair. Often pulled back into a man bun. Blue eyes. Father's favorite son, and the only one that followed in his father's footsteps as a hunter. Will most likely inherit father's hunting business. Justin, 23, buzzcut, dirty blonde hair, "hottest of them all", green eyes, actor, tallest, tattoos on chest and arms...and gay. Tim, 22, college student, blind due to car accident with friends, former teal eyes, dyed, curly, black hair. Freckles. And lastly….Hans. And out of all of his brothers, some with misfortunes...he happened to be the only one disowned by his father and ignored growing up.

He just wanted acceptance. But he got the short end of the stick instead. Like, you'd think that Justin, being gay, or Mich, being in a mental hospital, or Tim and Andy being Blind and deaf, or even fucking Greg being dead, ya'd think they'd have the worst lives but no. No. You see, Justin was his mother's favorite. Mich was getting so much attention from the family. Tim and Andy have his father's respect. And Greg? Every year they celebrate his birthday by shooting fireworks into the sky from every single one of his father's company locations. Do you know how many times everyone forgot Hans' fucking birthday? His mother still calls him fucking "hands".

Hans got up from his seat and left his room. He makes his way down the hallway and outside onto the dock. Kristoff was there, practicing his shot. They had created a little gun range area for him to practice on; placing targets on sticks and standing them up. Even for his first time using weapons like this, he was not that bad. Kristoff was actually hitting the targets dead in the center. Hans couldn't help but to feel proud knowing he had brought this side of the blonde out.

"You must really like me to have been staring for so long." Kristoff joked

Hans jumped a bit. He hadn't realized the man was aware of his presence. He smiles nonetheless, "I can't help it. I just get this feeling when i'm around y-"

"Okay, okay, don't make it weird." Kristoff Grimiced.

Hans chuckled, "so how are you doing?"

"I'm fine...but worried."

"We all are. That's why we're doing this."

"Oh yeah. So run that plan by me again?"

"Reinforcements come in today. After we ready up the boat with the extra supplies they'll bring, and run the plan by them, we'll be on our way back the jungle a day after everything is settled. There, we'll set up camp on the north beach. There's a cliff right behind it and a cave that leads up into the jungle. That way we'll be able to get back and forth to the jungle and the only way anything can get to our camp is by jumping off that cliff or swimming on to shore. Next, we go after Elsa. We'll have way better ammunition and guns by then. We save her. Lastly...well...you won't have to know that."

"What do you mean? I have to everything with Elsa's life at stake…"

"Well...the rest is more for my sake."

Before Kristoff can reply, they were interrupted.

"Sir, another ship approaches! Friendlies!" A sailor called out to them.

Hans, out of the corner of his eye, managed to spot a ship. He started towards the edge of the dock, the other ship getting closer by the second. Immediately he paled. "No way…"

"What?" Kristoff stepped beside him, "who are they"

Hans' face got red, and his fists clenched. He stormed his way over in the direction of the other ship, and under his breath he managed to mutter, "Liam."

~~000~~

Ugh, my head...what happened?...where...where am I?

Elsa groaned as she sat up, hand clutching at her head. She felt warm. It was probably the sun rays…..sun rays. Her eyes shot upon noticing that she was outside….or inside? Her eyes roamed as the scanned her surroundings. With each second her eyes grew wider and her hand lowered. Around her, there was only stone, branches, moss, and leaves. She was in a cave. Not at home, nor on the boat, nor was she at the camp. She was somehow in a cave. She was confused, and slightly scared. She wasn't bound or tied, so that must mean that whoever brought her here, they weren't completely hostile. Memories flooded back. A girl with red hair and beautiful teal eyes. Elsa gasped as she remembered what had occurred the night before. "That girl…"

"ehem"

Elsa jumped and swung herself around to face whomever made that sound. Her eyes grew hard as she realized who it was. "You…" She began to slowly back away, "Where am I? Where'd you bring me?"

The girl tilts her head, in the most adorable way, might Elsa add. She seemed confused. Elsa tried again. "Where am I? Do you not understand English!?"

The girl's eyes seemed to widen as she leaped to her feet and threw her hands up, shaking them rapidly. Elsa quirked an eyebrow. What was this girl doing? The girl placed one finger before her lips in a motion that seemed to be telling Elsa to be quiet. This angered the blonde. She was not only attacked, but kidnapped. And now instead of answering her questions, the jungle girl was telling her to be quiet? Elsa stood up and pointed a finger at her, "Hell no! You tell me where the hell I am or I swear to you and this damned jungle that I-"

*boom*

The cave shook.

Elsa, gulped. Her palms grew sweaty. What...was that?

*bam*

Another shake.

"H-hey! What's going on! What's happening!" Elsa begged the girl.

She wasn't listening.

She was frozen.

She looked terrified.

Elsa was about to ask another question when another bang sounded. This time the vibration of the cave caused Elsa to fall back on her butt. She looked up at the girl and noticed that something was blocking the light from the sun from entering the cave, casting a large shadow over the jungle girl. The older woman slowly turned her head towards the entrance of the cave. Immediately her mouth went dry and her hands began to shake.

ROOOAAAR!

Elsa covered her ears and ducked her head, her eyes clenched shut. After the roaring stopped, she looked back up. Before her, stood the biggest beast she had ever scene. Its white fur sticking up in anger, like a cat's fur does when they're frightened. It looked like a gorrilla, and Elsa was pretty sure it WAS a gorrilla. A TERRIFYING one at that. She looked back to the girl, who, for some dumb reason, was walking towards the beast. The girl let out a small whine as she physically shrank down with every step closer to the gorrilla. It growled and let another, but shorter roar. This one, shocking Elsa, made the blond yelp; unfortunately for her, it cause the animal to freeze and look in her direction. It growled louder….and charged. Elsa let out a blood curling scream as it jumped towards her. Just before it was able to get her, the jungle girl leaped between them, eyes blazing with anger and back straight, in a more dominant stance than earlier. The gorilla came to a halt and glared at the red head with confusion and anger. The girl growled lowly….

Silence.

*smack*

The gorilla, nonchalantly, smacked the girl to the side and continued its advance on Elsa; but the girl jumps back between them almost immediately. This time, the animal looked annoyed. The girl was bleeding from the head but she didn't look fazed. The gorilla roared once again, spit flying all over the redhead's face, her hair blowing back and her face contorted into a look of disgust. He stopped roaring and snorted at her. His eyes glanced at Elsa. It being this close allowed Elsa to notice it's amazing features. It's eyes were ice blue and the fur on it's shoulders were slightly spiked. He truly looked like a monster. It turned its attention back to the girl and did what Elsa believed to be "rolling it's eyes". It turned around and started out of the cave, the redhead relaxing a bit. She looked back at Elsa before lowering down onto all fours and stalking towards her.

"What was that? What are you doing?" Elsa asked hesitantly this time.

The girl tilts her head and reaches towards Elsa.

"What are you doing!?" Elsa began backing up, wanting to put space between her and the girl. Unfortunately her back then hit the wall of the cave.

The girl got closer and once again reached. Elsa watched as the girl placed a hand on her leg and began to inspect it.

"Wh-what?"

The girl looked up at her, "Hurt…"

That's when Elsa understood. She had noticed the bloodied wrap on Elsa's leg. The redhead got up and bolted out of the cave. Elsa sat there, confused. What was going on? This….nothing made sense. Why her? Everything was happening way too fast. Elsa groaned as she rubbed her temple. At that moment the girl came running back in; her hands full with berries, leaves, a vine, and a couple of sticks. She placed them on the ground beside her and grabbed Elsa's leg. She stretched it out and took off the cloth. Elsa gagged at the sight of the large slice down her leg. Anna took the berries and squished them together, rubbing and rubbing until it was a liquidy, cream-like substance. She the rubbed it onto Elsa's cut. Then she grabbed a bunch of white, moving creatures and placed them in Elsa's cut. "What are you doing!?" No answer. Elsa watched in fascination as the girl then took the long, large leaves and wrapped it around the wound. "Where am I?" The girl ignored her. She then took the vine which happened to be tied around the stick, and used it like a makeshift tourniquet. "Why are you ignoring me?" The girl glanced up, then continued. Just then, another question popped into Elsa's mind.

"What...what is your name?"

The redhead shook her head as she finished up on Elsa's leg. Elsa inspected it herself this time. "What did you do?"

The girl sighed, "Maggots stop bad sickness. Stick stop blood." She then turns to leave. Elsa got up to follow. The redhead turned and glared at her.

"Stay."

"Wh-"

"Warning." And then she was gone.

Elsa sat there, shocked, and one thing on her mind.

What was this girl's name?

~~000~~

"Hans!" The blond man greeted his younger brother as he stepped onto his ship, "How are you?"

"I'm fine Liam. What brings you to my ship?" Hans groaned.

"Father said you needed reinforcements?"

"I didn't mean you"

"Too bad, cause that's what you got!" Liam laughed as he roamed around his younger brother's deck. "Nice boat you got here. Of course, mine's better."

Liam turned to face Hans, "Who is that?" He pointed at Kristoff.

"A friend," Hans deadpanned as he grabbed his brother's arm and dragged him into the ship, "Let have a tour, shall we?"

They strolled through the halls, Hans showing his brother every room and all the staff. He explained the situation they were in and how it happened. Of course, Liam had some snide remarks here and there. They then came across the guest room in which Liam would be staying. They entered.

"Ah, pretty nice." Liam chuckled.

"Glad I could please you," Hans rolled his eyes.

"I see father has grown restless with you." Liam quipped.

"Oh?"

"What did you do now, Hans? Or should I say, what didn't you do?" Liam laughed.

Hans' pupils dilated with anger, "Why don't you keep your mouth shut and focus on what you're here for, Liam!"

"Aw, I didn't mean to make you upset." He laughed again, "Ah, I digress. I wanted to tell you about the new plan."

Hans narrowed his eyes, "What new plan."

"After we save your little girlfriend, father has put me in charge of the main goal."

"What? This is my ship and my mission!"

"Not anymore, Hans." Liam smirked, "Father would never trust you with anything so important."

Hans let out an aggravated scream and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him. He whipped out his cellular device and called up his father.

Hans.

"Are you serious!" Hans screamed as he entered his own room.

What.

"Him!? Of all the obnoxious assholes, you chose Liam!? What're you, crazy-"

If you know what's best for you boy, you'll shut up.

Hans froze. He sighed and cleared his throat, "My apologize, father. But Liam-"

Is going to make sure you get the job done

"...you don't trust me."

I believe I have reason not to, do I not.

"Father…"

*beep*

He hung up.

~~000~~

*tap tap tap*

Elsa was growing impatient. Her foot was rapidly tapping on the cold stone. She looks up to the entrance of the cave. She could leave….but the girl told her not to….but why should she care...the girl wasn't in charge of her! She was her own woman! She was the daughter of the world's greatest hunter. She listened to no one...then why couldn't she do it? Why couldn't she just...leave? Was she...scared? ….no. No Elsa wasn't scared. She had no reason to be. The only thing to fear is fear itself. Elsa inhales slowly as she hesitantly walked towards the opening of the cave.

There you go Elsa, one step at a time.

As soon as she felt the grass beneath her, she sighed in content. There was nothing out here...absolutely nothing…..she could leave! Elsa smiled as she took as step forwards…

*thud*

She froze.

There was breathing….

Hot breathing….

On her neck…

She turned around slowly. Before her, was someone she never hoped to see again. She gulped as she took a step back.

ROOOOAAAAR


	8. Doomed from the Start

When he was born, Hans' mother nearly didn't make it. The stress of all the kids she's given birth to had taken a toll on her. His parents wanted a daughter. But they were cursed with sons with no end. So they had given up after him. His mother could take no more. His father was a busy man, so his mother practically raised him. Being the last born of 12 kids, he was rarely special to her. Whatever he could do, the others had already done it.

When he was 4, his father stopped spending the time he could with him. He was always too busy with work or with his older brothers. It wasn't too bad. His father at least made it up to him by taking him out for anything he wanted at the end of every month. It wasn't like his father didn't love him. He was still one of his sons.

When he was 10, Luke started bullying him. He pushed Hans around and made him feel depressed at times. His other brothers weren't particularly as mean as Luke, but they weren't nice either. They simply didn't care. Hans was just another body in the family to them. At least that's how they felt at the time.

When he was 12, he met his first true friends. Elsa and somewhat Kristoff. He met them on the beach. Elsa was kind and understanding, Kristoff was…weary. Around this time, his family had gotten worse. He was no longer a son or a brother. He was forgotten. Left behind. He was an extra. A spare. A nobody.

When he was 15, his oldest brother kyle had met the love of his life. Just seeing this gave Hans himself some hope. James and Darwin were planning something big. What it was, no one knew. All but Gregson, one of the three triplets, who found himself becoming part of their scheme. His brother Greg, another of the triplets, had started drinking. After he turned 21 he couldn't help but find absolute bliss in the poison, while their other brother Alex found comfort in the albums of "Iron Maiden". Gregory, the last of the triplets, fought nonstop for his father's favor. His goal lied within taking over the business and legacy their father had. Mich, against their father's word, played in his college baseball team. Andy became way more interested in his school work. Liam found himself working beside their father day in and day out. Justin began acting strange. He was out late nights after school, grades were slipping, and he skipped classes. And Tim started hanging out with the wrong crowd. Their father, however, was planning on how to make sure all of his sons stayed within his footsteps. The path he set for them.

Around 17 Hans had learned everyone's secrets. His brothers were spiteful to him, and way less accepting than how they've been in the past. Hans saw this as an opportunity. A chance to prove his worth. He'd make sure they'd never forget him. He'd gain their love. Later on in the year. He had lost the only friends he truly had. They had left to pursue their dreams. Now it was time for him to pursue his.

His brother had gotten married and had left for new york. He wanted to start his own family. His own legacy. Their father's reaction had put everyone else in fear. He was pissed. Absolutely livid. He had planned for ALL of his sons to follow in his footsteps. The fact that one of them even thought about abandoning all he worked hard for was enough to make him want to vomit. His anger was enough to make the rest of his sons hesitant to do anything but follow their father. But not Hans. It only gave Hans the fuel to his engine.

James and Darwin's secret was exposed to him. They were planning to start their own business and to have Gregson help them. Hans wanted to make sure they got what they wanted, despite what their father might think. At 17, he helped their architectural dreams set flight. He found a way for their design to be published. Gregson of course handled the rest. With that, they were able to set themselves free.

He attempted the same thing with Alex, encouraging him to share his talents with the world. But Alex didn't budge. It had little to do with their father and more to do with his anxiety.

Mich had dropped out of the team, finally giving in to their father. There was nothing Hans could do to inspire him to start the sport again.

Justin wasn't a hard target. He was passionate about how he felt. So when Hans encouraged him to embrace his sexuality and fear nothing else, that's just what he did. He found himself a male lover and took off, refusing to attend college.

When Hans was 19, his father had finally gotten the rest of the remaining brothers a job within his business. They had three days of freedom left to themselves before they would start working their asses off nonstop and becoming as busy as their father. It was miserable for them. The thought of being forced into something they wanted nothing to do with was absolutely painful. But what was even more painful, was the regret Hans felt within those three days.

Those three days in which He had convinced Mich to play one more game of baseball with his old teammates before he lost the chance.

Those three days in which he told Tim that there was no harm in going to that party with his friends and getting drunk.

Those three days in which he told Greg to get as drunk as possible and release some pain.

Those three days in which Gregory told him how angry he was that Luke had won their father's favor instead of him, and in response, Hans had told him to "make father wish he didn't"

Those three days in which He told Alex to share his talents before it's too late.

Those three days in which he told Andy he was too smart to waste his life on bullets and and animal fur.

Those three days…

In which he ruined his own life.

He was just born when he was cursed with the unfortunate life he had. He was 4 when he was exposed to the true feeling of loneliness. He was 10 when that loneliness became pain. He was 12 when that pain became happiness. He was 15 when his family began to change. He was 17 when he decided to do something about it. And then, he was 19...when he was informed that there was an incident when Mich, playing outfield in a baseball game, let the ball slip through his hands, bounce off of the dirt, and hit him square in the temple. He had a brain injury, . He was placed in a mental hospital. Later that day, Greg had drunk himself to death. His liver was poisoned. Some other time Tim, drunk driving, had crashed his car. He got to glass shards to the eyes. He went blind. The very next day, they had discovered that Gregory, Alex, and Andy had ran away. Alex, to fulfill his "dream"; Andy, to become a scientist; and Gregory...nowhere to be found. On the day that their father had intended to get them their jobs, Hans had been disowned. He had "destroyed the family". He "couldn't be trusted.". Liam had worked beside their father and continued to please him to no end. Hans? He worked endlessly to get his father's respect back throughout the rest of the year.

It was when he turned 21 that he was given another chance. He knocked on the door to his father's office.

"Come in."

Hans gulped, silently praying that this would end well for him as he entered the room. The lights was dimmed. It was quiet, save for the cackling of the fireplace to the left of him. Framed heads of multiple beasts hung upon the walls of the large room, their lifeless eyes staring at Hans as if to taunt him. Hans sat down at his father's desk. A picture of his father and his mother sat there beside a name plate. He folded his hands in his lap and stared the devil himself in the eye. His father looked rugged. His beard thick and grey and his hair in a similar manner, slicked back with gel. It was like he jumped out of bed and came to work with nothing but neat hair. He was wearing a red flannel with baggy jeans. His eyes were blue and piercing. The man was emotionless. He showed no anger nor compassion for Hans. He was simply...placid. Has shifted in his seat. Getting very uncomfortable with his father's looks.

"Don't take this meeting for pity, boy."

"No father, of course not. What did you need."

"The daughter of Calbourne Welch is requesting our services."

"Yes, I've heard."

"You've befriended her a while back, have you not?"

It was a rhetorical question, Hans knew.

His father leaned forward, folding his hands atop of his desk. His eyes were fixed on Han's. His expression was dead. Nothing but a cold heart placed within his chest; a reflection of his feelings towards his son. But it could change. Hans knew it could. That's why he was here. "Let me tell you a story boy."

Hans nodded and gave every ounce of his attention towards his father, not like it wasn't given in the first place.

"When my father was a but a child, his father had helped a friend on a journey. His friend's name was Alistair. They traveled from norway to the african city of cape town. From there they had found an island. Uncharted. Alistair had then revealed to my grandfather that he had found a book within a chest in his basement. It had dated back to way older times. In this book, it stated that in hundreds of years, it was believed that an island would grow due to scientific evidence gathered by the study of plate boundaries and tectonic shifts. Alistair, having been the real founder of the now grown island, got all rights to it. However, he couldn't have done it without my grandfather's help. My grandfather proposed that he civilize the area, the island was big enough and was most likely rich in minerals. But Alistair had other plans. Instead of settling for riches and fame he settled for entertainment. He wanted it to be a tourist attraction. He wanted to settle down on the island and make plans. Study it. And other types of crap." Han's father took a second and paused. He scratched his white beard as he sat back in his chair, turning ever so slightly in both directions.

Then he continued, "He made a family there. On the beach of the island, away from the jungle and its monstrosities. Eventually down the family line, a young man decided to take on Alistair's dream. That boy's name was Agdar. Agdar arendelle. My father, having been told this story by his father, decided that he wasn't going to let such a great opportunity go to waste. That island could have been shared, for it was his father that truly found it seeing as though Alistair couldn't have done anything without him. So, my father decided that he would send my brother, Cedrick, to handle the situation. Cedrick spoke to Agdar, pleaded and negotiated. But he was continuously denied. So it came down to force. They practically deceived us. Used us to get to that island. And we weren't going to let the arendelle family get away with it. So one night, Cedrick traveled to the Island and….settled things. Needless to say, the arendelle family is nowhere to be found."

"He...he murdered the family…" Hans gulped. He never expected his family to be so...ruthless.

"Not murdered….handled."

"I-I confused...what does this have to do with Elsa? With me?"

"Mr. Welch is a very skilled hunter. He was great friends with Arendelle who loved to hunt for sport. He had a whole jungle to do so after all. Welch was a very close and trusted friend to him. So Welch had rights to the island if anything happened to Agdar. Agdar wasn't a fool. He knew that with all the intense insistence from my brother, something was going to happen."

"Did he not have a child to take over?"

"He did. A daughter. Who also went missing around the age of six."

Hans paled. They had the guts...to kill a toddler?

As if reading his mind, his father grimaced and assured him, "the daughter went missing on her own. Though we can properly assume she's dead. In any case, Welch was also handled. Unbeknownst to us, however, he too had a daughter. We didn't know until she made a name for herself recently as another great hunter, just like her father. She had been with her mother all this time. Her parents divorced."

Getting more serious, Hans' father leaned in and stated firmly, "She is journeying to the island for a hunting expedition. She needs a ship. You get her there and you find a way to get us the rights to the gold mine of an island."

Hans' dad smiled

"Then, my son, I will welcome you back to this family with open arms."

~~000~~

Now he sits here, looking outside his window, smiling as he watches his old friend exit her car alongside her companion. He turns to the mirror to check himself one last time. After he had visited them in person and assured them that they could use his ship, Elsa had asked him to take Sven with him for the week so that it would be much less trouble traveling there themselves, much to Kristoff's distaste. Nonetheless, he took the dog, and now the german shepherd is whining and scratching at the door, begging to be let out whilst Hans' furry companion, Sitron, sits patiently. Hans chuckled and made his way over to the door, twisting the knob and letting the creature run free to his formal master. Sitron calmly tags along. This was it. This was the moment the mission is set into motion. He couldn't fail. He couldn't miss the opportunity he's been waiting for since forever. After gathering himself, he heads out on the deck of ship, letting another smile cross his face as he watches sven, beside a more composed sitron, harass an unexpecting Elsa.

There was no turning back.

~~000~~

There was no turning back. They had approached the island. They had their reinforcements. Not an expected group of armed men, but an unfortunate group of armed men and his brother. Liam. Hans looked out towards the island as the ship's anchor drops to the ground. A platform is released and Hans makes his way onto the beach.

"Alright men, start setting up crates. Start setting up tents. Let's go! Move it!"

Multiple feet rush around to do as Liam informed them. He made his way off of the ship along side Kristoff, to Hans' dismay. "Hey, Hans, you never told me about how cool your brother was! This guy's great!"

"Yeah," Hans muttered, "a real charmer."

"Oh come on Hans," Liam laughed, clapping his hand on his brother's shoulder once he made his way over to him, "Lighten up, we're here."

Hans scoffed and looked towards Kristoff, "Later tonight, meet me in the main tent to go over the plan."

Kristoff gave a nod as the three began to walk the perimeter of the beach, "So, I take it that you're pretty good at whatever you do, eh Liam? I mean, I expected about two or three ships but you're the only one."

"Ah, no. I'm but a simple hunter. But I'm smart and skilled enough to see a job through when I get one." Liam chuckled, "Father informed me that things were getting a bit too complicated over here."

"The only complications we had were a bunch of blood thirst apes." Hans grunted as he kicked a small rock ahead of him.

"And the abandonment of a close friend." Kristoff quickly added, slightly taken aback by Hans failing to mention Elsa.

"Right, and how exactly did she happen to get left behind?" Liam genuinely asked, having been left out of the loop about these details.

"When we were attacked, Elsa was still with a small group of people that went out hunting for food. We were losing a lot of men, so Hans insisted we retreat, that we had no time to wait for Elsa. I, honestly, still think that was a horrible choice."

"Ha, well, Hans has a record for making bad choices." Liam glaced at his brother.

Hans internally screamed and externally growled. Kristoff, sensing the uncomfortable tension between the two brothers, decided to make an out for himself, "well, I'm gonna go help set up and get Sven situated."

Once he was far enough and out of earshot, Hans pushed his brother back. Liam stumbled backwards, laughing.

"What the hell is wrong with you!?"

"What," Liam said, catching his breath, "I didn't do anything little brother."

"Oh you're doing something alright! You're purposefully making things hard for me. You were sent here to help us out on our objective not to piss me off!"

"And that's exactly what I'm gonna do, so calm down."

"Which one are you exactly gonna do?"

"Both piss you off and help you achieve your objective."

Liam laughed again as Hans shoved him harder.

"Listen here, I don't have time for your shenanigans! I have a friend that needs saving and-"

"And a father to please," Liam became more serious now, standing with his back straight and his arms folded, "It's not about a friend. It's about a target. Elsa is the target. You keep forgetting that."

Hans hesitated, "I'm all willing to go along with father, but Elsa is still a friend of mine. Unlike you, she was always there for me."

"So is it her or us?"

"...w-what?"

"Is she your friend? Or the target." Liam began to advance on him.

"Cant she be….both?"

"No. You see, little brother, if she is your friend then she is not the target. Because you can't target someone close to you. I mean think about it. After you take everything and claim this island, do you think that she'd ever associate herself with you again? You have to be peaceful first. Get her to sign this island over to you. And if that fails, then you force her. This is something you do to a target, not a friend."

Liam stops advancing and Hans stares at him with wide eyes. The blonde was right and he knew it. Elsa couldn't be both. Either he lost his only good friend or his family and his honor. It was a choice he had to make.

"Which is it, Hans?" Liam asked for the final time.

Hans blinked and swallowed. His palms were sweaty. He looked over to his men who were setting up everything they could with slight struggle. "W-we should help them out."

With that he turned abruptly, and started towards the working men. Liam watched as he went. He shook his head slightly and slowly trailed behind Hans. His words echoing in the red haired man's head

Friend?

Or Target?

~~000~~

"The objective is simple," Hans stated as he slid a sketched out map of the discovered parts of the island before his brother and Kristoff, "We find Elsa and we get the hell out of here."

"Of course, yes. But how the hell are we supposed to do that?" Liam deadpanned.

Choosing to ignore the remark, Hans continued, "We need to find out where those apes have their colony first. Once we find that out, we can gather up supplies and find out how exactly to get through. That's where we will search for Elsa. That's the only place we can think of seeing as though no other animals can physically kidnap a human being."

"And how do we know they apes have her?" Kristoff jumped in.

"We don't," Scoffed Hans, "But what other lead do we have?

"So what then? How exactly do we find out where they are? And how exactly do we 'get through'." Liam sighed as he leaned back in his chair.

"That's the thing. We might have to lure them out."

"What!?" Kristoff slammed his hand on the table, the other hand raking through his hair in frustration. "You wanna lure those assholes out? To kill us?"

"We managed to get our hands on some tracking devices. We will lure them out away from the camp. We won't start any violence. I'll have a guy, a hunter, shoot a sleeping dart at one of them. Once the others disperse, and hopefully the do, then we can inject the device into the ape and bam! When he wakes up and goes home, we can track him. After that, we can figure out how to get through."

"I gotta say Hans, this plan sounds like it almost might not fail." Liam chuckled.

"Do you have any other ideas?" Hans' frustration began to grow.

Liam smiled and put both hands up in surrender.

"Like I thought."

Kristoff stood up from his seat and sighed, "It's all we got for now, ain't it?" He turned and exited the tent.

Liam looked after him and shrugged, "someone's a pessimist."

"Elsa's like a sister to him."

"Sure she is. I bet twenty that he's boning her." Liam laughed as he slapped his leg and stood up.

"Jokes on you jackass, she's gay." Hans growled.

"Aw damn. Just about any girl is these days." Liam continued to smile as he turned and started towards the exit of the tent, "Night Hans, sleep tight. Don't let the bed bugs bi-"

"Get. out."

Liam laughed again as he exited the tent. He lived to give Hans a hard time. They both knew it. Hans sighed as he buried his face in his hands. He hoped to God that this plan worked. There literally was no other way to do this without getting police and military involved. And seeing as though there was a lot of illegal activity that has taken place on this island due to him and his family, that wouldn't be the best of ideas. He rose to his feet and exited the tent, heading to his own for a good night's sleep. As he lay down that night, multiple words echoed through his mind as he closed his eyes.

Friend or Target

There's no turning back

Redemption

He started to wonder to himself…

Would this all really be worth it?


	9. Evergreen

The roar was so loud it echoed through nearly the whole jungle. Elsa was really hoping that she didn't have to see the white giant again, but here he stood; and she was sure that he was going to kill her off.

He didn't. In fact, he sat there, seething at her. Disgusted with her existence. Elsa wasn't a fool, though. She didn't move. She didn't test him. She simply shrunk down on herself, hoping that the ape before her would take that as her showing her vulnerability. That she didn't want any trouble. The ape huffed a breath of air. Suddenly, he grabbed her, not giving her a chance of realization of what was occurring as he leaped into the air and away from the cave. Elsa was once again in shock, unable to comprehend what he was doing or where he was going. She felt the wind hitting her with every leap he took. Trees whipped past them and branches nicked at her skin, leaving little cuts here and there. Eventually the torture ended, as she and the ape broke through the trees and entered a clearing.

Elsa struggled to catch her quickening breaths. Her eyes squinting now that the sun's rays could fully penetrate her vision. Slowly, her sights began to clear up. It was then that Elsa wished she could have stayed in the cave. She was surrounded. Completely surrounded by Gorillas. Any chance she had of escaping was now was long gone. She was sure she was going to die. There wasn't anything else left for her in that moment. The white ape dropped her on the ground in the middle of the clearing. The area looked much like a court. She sat on the lush green grass while the Gorillas sat on stone like steps that stretched around her like a circle. A waterfall was the only thing that broke the circle's path. The thickness of the many trees made it difficult to see in or out of the clearing.

Elsa got to her knees, now covered in fresh cuts, and a throbbing leg that never got the chance to heal. The sound of soft footsteps caught her attention. She looked up to once again see the red headed girl. Elsa would've thought she'd be used to that face by now. The girl got to her knee and examined Elsa once again. It had occurred to Elsa that the girl might be seen as a friend by the animals. None of them wanted to harm her, save for the time the white ape slapped her senseless. What Elsa couldn't understand was why and how the girl was here.

The girl shook her head in disappointment, "I said stay. You don't listen"

"Seriously, who are you?"

The girl didn't answer. She simply stared.

"How did you get here?"

Nothing.

Elsa was done with the silence. She grabbed the girls arm and yanked her towards her. The girl didn't flinch, nor did she react; but the apes all jumped to attention, and they started to get loud. The white Gorilla stepped closer to them. Elsa ignored him, and hoped that it was a smart idea to do so. That he wouldn't get angry with her and hurt her for it, "Listen here! You can't just kill my people, kidnap me, and then not answer any of my damn questions! Do you have no manners!? Did your parents teach you nothing!? Do you even have parents!?"

That seemed to get the girl's attention. The arm Elsa held jerked backwards causing Elsa to fall forwards into another hand that clutched her throat. The girl's grip was tight, but not too tight. Elsa instinctively grasped the arm that held her neck.

"Careful, hunter." The girl spat through her teeth.

Elsa was more of an intellectual than a fighter, so when she noticed the hostility she triggered with the mention of the girl's parents, her eyes went wide with realization. She knew.

"It's you," She croaked, "You're the missing girl, aren't you?"

The grip on her neck tightened. "Enough."

"N-no, wait!" Air was getting more difficult to breathe, "I u-understand! It all makes s-sense! You look y-young! Y-your red hair! You never d-died! Y-you adapted!"

"ENOUGH!"

Elsa was thrown from her spot on the ground, her head hitting the dirt as she landed a foot or two away from the girl. She didn't watch as the redhead stormed towards her with eyes that could kill. She struggled to catch her breath instead, "The bodies of your parents were found a few days after they didn't come back, but yours wasn't. You stayed. You're her! You're Anna Arendelle!"

A kick to the jaw

Elsa's head flew backwards. She could taste copper in her lips. Her head ached and the world began to spin. She sat up slowly, her hand rubbing her sore jaw. She looked up at her abuser. The girl...no...Anna, was angry. All this time, Elsa should've known. It all made sense. Anna had disappeared when she was six years old, thirteen years ago; and here she stood, looking no older than twenty or so. Her hair was also a giveaway. Her father had a small genetic mistake as a child. He had a small white stripe through his head. Now, Anna stood here with one in hers. Besides, there was no other redheaded girl that was capable of being trapped on the island for a long time. That would be one rare coincidence. There was no mistaking it. That knowledge in itself was enough to draw many more questions.

"Please, I just want to know-"

"No." Anna silenced her.

Elsa wasn't take that for an answer, "You have me captive! I'll cooperate with you if you just answer some questions."

Anna tilted her head in confusion. She looked like the apes around them in that moment; unsure and curious. It took Elsa a minute to realize that Anna was left there at six years old, so she wouldn't understand such large language. Elsa switched her wording, hoping it would make a difference, "I will listen to you if you answer me."

"Listen well?"

"Yes. I will listen well."

Anna got onto a knee, once again examining the blonde woman's face. Elsa believed that to be her favorite thing to do. "Three." Anna spoke.

"Three?"

"Three questions. Ask."

Elsa would have to choose wisely, and hope that she'd get another chance another day. She would have to choose questions that would reveal enough for her without triggering the girl. So that meant any question about her parents wasn't a choice. "Well, first off. Why are you still here? Many people have came to this island, so why haven't you left?"

"People are bad. Don't like people. Two."

So simple, yet it only brought more questions. She wanted to ask why she hated people, yet she felt that that would have something to do with her parents. So she decided to save that for another day...well, if she made it through another day, "How have you survived this whole time?"

Anna was quiet for a moment. "Apes. Apes took me when I was young. Apes raise me. One."

Elsa thought hard on this one, "Why me? Why did you leave me alive when you kill everyone else?"

Nothing. She was beginning to wonder if she asked the wrong question. She would've taken it back had Anna not already answered.

"Don't know."

The apes began to get riled up again. It appeared that they were getting bored and wanted some sort of entertainment. Elsa looked around at them, slightly interested in their behavior, slightly scared of what their behavior meant. "Do they understand us?" She asked the girl.

"I said three questions." Anna reminded her as she grabbed her by the arms and stood her up, "Let's go back to the cave, now."

She began to push Elsa back in the direction they came from. The white ape grew aware of her intentions and put up a fuss by jumping in their way. He rose on his hind legs and beat his chest, then pointed to the center of the glade. Anna stepped between them, "No fighting. No." She finished off with a small growl. The ape huffed as she pulled Elsa passed him and back in the direction of the cave.

"What was that? What did he want?" Elsa attempted to pump more answers from the girl.

Anna growled again, "Too many questions."

"Well you did say something about fighting, and I was in the dead center of a small meadow surrounded by apes, so yes. I have many questions." Elsa yelped as the grip on her arm tightened in warning. She learned in that moment that the redhead had a superior, dominant personality of sorts and was surely getting fed up with Elsa's sass, questions, and rudeness.

"They want me to fight you. Apes don't like people. They want you dead."

"They don't like people, but they like you…"

Anna stopped and spun around to stare Elsa in the eyes, "I am no person. I'm not man. You are man. You kill and destroy everywhere you go."

"I'm not the one who killed nearly a hundred people over the past thirteen years."

They held that gaze, both with obvious hatred for the other. This was an argument neither would win. Both had valid points and neither was in the right. Elsa and other hunters killed for fun. Anna killed in anger. Though it can be debated that one is acceptable and one is not, it was obvious to both girls that both reasons were equally insane in their own ways. Anna yanked Elsa's hand again and continued toward the cave. Not another word was said after that. Once they reached their destination, Anna pushed Elsa onto the ground and retrieved her earlier makeshift medical supplies from the corner of the cavern. She returned to Elsa and repeated earlier's healing process on any other fresh cuts she received on the way to the glade, as well as the head and jaw bruises, and lip cuts that Anna caused herself. Elsa said nothing. Instead, she watched. The girl was frustrating. Elsa wouldn't lie about that….but she was beautiful. Gorgeous for a dirty woman that lived in the jungle...well, somewhat dirty. She looked cleaner and more hygienic than one would assume if they thought about it. The only dirt was on her skin. Some on her face, arms, stomach, and legs. Other than that, she smelled nice, looked nice, and felt nice...in a non perverted way. Her hair looked neatly brushed and groomed. Elsa was so into observing the girl that she didn't notice her finishing and placing her healing products back where she got them. When she came to, the girl was returning the same look to her. For some reason, they found themselves continuously looking at one another. The only thing that managed to tear their eyes away from one another was the sound of gurgling. Anna looked to Elsa's stomach and then back into the blonde's eyes.

"You're hungry."

"I'm fine, really. I doubt there's much you could do-"

Anna stood abruptly, making her way to the mouth of the cave before turning back to Elsa. It was Deja Vu. Another repeat from earlier events. Elsa already knew what was going to be said before the auburn haired girl could even say it, "Stay. I know. I will."

Anna nodded, glad that the hunter finally understood. She left the cave.

~~000~~

"Reports?"

"Our reinforcements are on their way, sir."

"How far?"

"In about five days, sir. Three days if the weather stays consistent."

"Why so long?"

"They're factors, sir. Such as supplies, men, oil, and distance. They are coming from your father himself. Not too far away but far enough."

"Send for Liam, send for Kristoff. There things I must discuss with them."

"Yes, sir."

With that, the man left. Hans was alone in his room, alone to ponder. In three to five days time he'd have everything he'd need to search for Elsa, and it hurt him. It would take too long. Who knows if she could survive that time. He sighed and looked out of the window towards the setting sun. He supposed he should have more faith in her. She was better than him at survival and hunting. She could fight, shoot, hunt, build, and many other things. Her father made sure she'd never be unprepared. As long as he did what he needed to do, they'd be fine. She'd be fine.

Tap tap tap

The door opened to reveal Han's older brother and friend. Liam smiled and entered the room, Kristoff silently stalking behind him. Liam pulled a chair from Han's table and sat down, hands folded in front of him, "You called, brother?"

"Anyone ever tell you you knock like a woman?"

Liam smiled, "I've got their hair to look the part, don't I?"

Hans snorted, but not in an amused manner. He turned his gaze to Kristoff, "How're you faring?"

"Take a wild guess." Kristoff mumbled, "What'd you need?"

"To talk," Hans leaned back in his chair and folded his arms across his chest, "The reinforcements and shipments of supply will be here in three to five days."

"That's way too long!" Kristoff interrupted, "Was there no better way?"

Liam laughed, "My father does not play games. He chooses the best way possible. He is a smart man."

"Liam is right, Kristoff. You'll have to trust my father. Besides, Elsa is very capable of taking care of herself."

"I know she is, but she's still human and there are still wild animals!"

"Pessimist." Liam smiled.

Kristoff ignored the man, not having the energy nor the time to get into it with him. Hans on the other hand gave his brother a warningful look. Liam would never understand the seriousness of Elsa's wellbeing in regards to her relationship with the boys, but he did understand it in regards to their father's plan. So Hans didn't fear his brother doing anything too drastic. He continued to inform them, "Regardless, we are going to meet the shipments at the island so we will set sail tomorrow. The plan is the same as stated earlier, except one thing. We find three apes instead of one. We tranquilize and place a tracker inside all of them. We will receive better results then. By then, the reinforcements should be there and we can look for Elsa with better numbers and better weapons."

Kristoff nodded, "And that's all?"

"That's all."

"And if it doesn't work?"

Though Hans wasn't ready for the question, he would be lying if he said he didn't think about it at all, "It will. But if it doesn't, I will have a plan B in store."

With that, Kristoff stood, "May I go?"

Hans nodded.

When He and his brother were all that remain, Liam made sure to start his own interrogation, "What about our plan?"

Hans glared at the blonde man, "When we find Elsa, I will take advantage of the situation in order to get her to agree to the deed."

"How will you do that, little brother?"

"She would have just been attacked by animals. Apes more specifically. I can assure you she wouldn't mind giving the land over after that."

"And. If. She. Doesn't?" Liam leaned over the table, pushing his brother to answer the avoided question.

Hans swallowed, a look of disgust on his face as he looked his brother in the eyes, "I'll persuade her. She will."

Liam smiled once again, a small chuckle making its way through his vocal cords. He stood up from his seat.

"And if she doesn't, brother. I'll make her." Then he left.

Hans was once again alone. Alone to ponder.

~~000~~

Anna returned to the cave with many fruits, a coconut, and two fish in her hands. She dumped all of them on the ground. She then exited again only to return with wood and rocks. Elsa watched as the girl built a campfire, sticking the two fish on two skinnier sticks and handing one to her. The blonde slowly shifted her body so that she could roast the fish over the fire. Her eyes never fully left the woman beside her. Even if she stared at the fire, Anna was always in her peripheral vision. The redhead nonchalantly ate from the pile of fruits -in which consisted of bananas, berries, pears, and apples- as she roasted her own fish. They ate in silence, Elsa being more careful than the other about eating around the bones of the fish. Every now and then she could hear Anna grunt as a small bone pierced her gum. When they finished, Anna grabbed the coconut and broke it open by slamming it against the rock ground. The milk of the half nut-half fruit, spilled out onto the ground as Anna, for the third time in that hour, sprinted out into the woods and returned with water filled coconuts. She handed one to Elsa and drank from her own. Elsa didn't exactly know what to say or do as she sipped her drink. The warm fire kept them warm as the cold night's wind blew into the cavern. She was thankful that this girl knew how to do these things. Elsa could do it herself...if she could leave the cave without that white ape attacking her.

She didn't know how to feel about him. He seemed to be tolerant of Anna, but was still monstrous and murderous. Such would be expected by an ape, but when Elsa was in that field, none of those apes looked dangerous. They looked curious and innocent. Almost like playful children. They didn't all attack and kill her, and she was also thankful for that. She supposed she should thank Anna for saving her...twice. "Thank you for saving me from that ape. Again."

"Marshmallow."

"...what?"

"His name is marshmallow."

That was a completely ironic name for a spiked-fur white gorilla that wanted nothing more than to bite Elsa's head off.

"You've met olaf, too."

"Who?"

"My bird."

Oh yes, Elsa remembered him clearly. The bird was currently sleeping in his nest on a small podium like rock in the back of the cave.

"My turn." Anna spoke quietly

"Excuse me?"

"It is my turn for questions."

Elsa hadn't been expecting that, but then again she had been through nothing but surprises all day. She nodded simply and allowed Anna to question her, but not without a little payback, "only three."

Anna was quiet for a second. She seemed to be thinking as she kept her eyes on Elsa. Then she smiled. A beautiful smile, might Elsa add. She hadn't seen the girl smile since she met her, and she wasn't disappointed. Pearly clean white teeth glowed with the yellow of the fire. Dimples made themselves known, and rose cheeks squished her eyes making the shine with fascination. Elsa swallowed, her face getting warm from the reaction.

"Your name." Anna's first question.

"Elsa."

"Ell-sah" Anna tested the name on her toungue. Elsa shivered at the way it rolled through her lips, "Why are you here?"

Elsa laughed a bit, "You brought me here, remember?"

Anna smiled again. Elsa made it her personal mission to attempt to make her smile as much as possible, "I mean on the island."

"I...I wanted to explore and hunt. My partners just wanted to mentally chart out every inch of the island. Discover anything we could. My family hold the deeds to the island, so I figured why not see it for myself?"

Anna nodded, but Elsa knew she only understood a little of the mouthful she spoke, "Why do you kill little animals?"

"...why do you kill people?"

"This is my turn, not yours."

Elsa smiled, looking the offended girl in the eyes, "I don't know."

Another bout of deja vu. Anna tilted her head, her signature move, as Elsa liked to call it. Without saying a word, Anna laid down on her back, her hands behind her head as she closed her eyes. Elsa took this as her time to do the same and sleep. She took off her jacket and laid it across her like a blanket. She was dirtied, sweaty, and muddy. She wanted nothing more than to bathe. She wasn't accustomed to sleeping filthy; but she'd have to do it that night. She closed her eyes. Breathing slowly and willing herself to sleep. Elsa was nearly in dream land when Anna spoke once more.

"Goodnight, Elsa."

With that, she willingly lost consciousness.


	10. Fall Out

Birds chirping.

Leaves rustling.

Winds blowing.

Warmth.

Elsa almost thought that she was sleeping peacefully in the safe blankets of and on her bed. The only realization that she wasn't was the hard rock beneath her, and it made her heart sink with disappointment. Oh, what she wouldn't give to go home. To sleep in her bed, and to have a nice meal.

She opened her eyes.

Icky.

Her whole body was covered in grime and dirt, clothes were torn, face greasy, mouth slimy, and she smelled like sweat and...well...bad fish if you know what she means.

She groaned as she sat up, dragging her dirty hands down her face in an attempt to wipe all the oil from it. She failed. Instead, she made the situation worse, mixing dirt and oils together and looking as if she just got through training in an American marine camp. She sighed in frustration.

A satisfying pop sounded as she stretched her back, her groan echoing through the cave. She sat up and smacked her sticky lips, forcing herself to her feet. At the mouth of the cave, she could see a mane of ginger hair attached to a slim-fit body, with a bird on the shoulder and an army bag right next to it.

Anna.

Hesitantly, she got to her feet and tiptoed her way towards the girl. She had believed she was being silent, but it was made apparent that her stealth skills were absolutely horrible when the redhead tilted her head slightly in Elsa's direction, a brow raised in question.

"What are you doing?"

While she hadn't really intended to scare the girl, she still felt a little offended by the nonchalant reaction. She frowned, standing straight and walking normally the rest of the way to stand beside the squatting redhead. The sudden wave of b.o. practically melted her nose hairs, making her grimace involuntarily. The heat of the jungle didn't make the situation any better. "You wouldn't happen to have any showers out here, would you?" She half choked, half laughed.

Anna, no longer being accustomed to "human" jokes and humor, simply looked at the hunter with a look that practically said 'are you fucking stupid?'. Nonetheless, she kept quiet and stood up with a grunt. She grabbed her dulled spear, strapped on her army bag and shrugged her shoulder, sending Olaf into the skies. She nodded for Elsa to follow her. Elsa obliged.

It wasn't that late into the morning. In fact, the sun had only starting rising about an hour ago. If Elsa had a watch, she could only assume that it was about 8 AM, or even earlier. The skies were a mix of reds, yellows, and even a little blue further away from the sun. The way the light beamed through the trees at this time, and highlighted the ground in a warming glow; Elsa couldn't help but admire nature's beauty. Under any other circumstances, Elsa would've loved to settle down on this Island, beneath the trees.

It was only a matter of time before the duo came across a wide stream of water, which led them to a lake. Anna, apparently having already cleaned herself earlier that evening, sat atop a large rock as she gestured her hand towards the water, letting Elsa know that that was how she would have to bathe.

The jungle life wasn't for a city girl like her. Occasional visits were fine enough. Looking at this lake now, all Elsa could think was how much she wanted to go home; though, she had been thinking that, the moment she saw the state of the camp after the team had left. Taking a deep breath, she released her braid and allowed her hair to flow thickly down her back in oily, matted clumps. She then took off her footwear, dipping a toe into the lake and testing its temperature; a habit she had with her bath water considering the rich life she lived at home, seeing as though her father was such an important man and all. She normally had housekeeping set her bath, so she always checked to make sure the temperature was right.

She glanced at the woman sitting upon the rock. She wished she hadn't. Her face flushed red with embarrassment.

Anna's face was deadpanned. This time her expression said 'Just get in the fucking water.'

Elsa cleared her throat and fumbled with the hem of her shirt. She bit her lip and glanced once more at Anna. "Can you...turn around?"

It took a second for Anna to comprehend the question, but eventually, she let out a dramatic groan and twirled her body to face the other direction. Elsa took that moment to strip her body of the rest of her clothing. She squeaked as she threw herself into the slightly chilly lake. She felt the oils and dirt on her skin slowly wash away, and her hair begin to soften as she ran her hands through it. The blonde emerged from the water, her back facing Anna as she cleaned herself. It was only when she heard another splash that she allowed herself to turn around.

Anna had grabbed her clothing and was attempting to clean them in the lake. Elsa's eyes widened when the younger girl grabbed her panties and dumped them in the water. She shouldn't feel bothered by this. She knows that. They're both women after all...well...sort of. However, watching her private clothing be handled by the redhead made her face flush red hot. She bit her tongue so as to not cry out in protest. In lieu, she continued to bathe. Occupying her mind with thoughts of cool freshwater and the feel of it among her skin. This tactic was successful. Too successful. She ended up losing track of time and only recognized it once the sound of annoyed moaning reached her ears. She looked behind her.

Anna, sprawled out along the large rock with her arm draped over her eyes and Olaf perched on her knee, was growing impatient with the hunters awfully long bath. Elsa smiled sheepishly as she slowly trudged towards the shoreline, covering any body part the was revealed on the way. She grabbed her now damp clothes and placed them on, grimacing at the thought of how uncomfortable she would be for a while. On the plus side, the horrid smell of must, dirt, and fish no longer remained. Anna sure did know what she was doing.

She cleared her throat, drawing Anna's attention. The redhead peeked out from behind her arm, an eyebrow raised in question. 'Are you done'. The girl was far better communicating with facial and bodily expressions than using her own words. Not that she had a long range of vocabulary in the first place. She was barely out of first grade when she got stuck here. Other than that, whatever else she learned was through the ...short interactions between her other people on the island, or even just listening into their conversations.

Anna sat up from her position on the rock and jumped off, grabbing her spear and bag. Olaf fluttered off into the sky, screeching as a normal falcon would do. The ginger nodded to Elsa, signaling the blonde to follow her once more. They weren't headed back to the cave. No. They were going in the wrong direction. Elsa had enough tracking and navigating skill to notice that. So where exactly was she taking her?

Off in the distance, Olaf could be heard screeching again. Anna stopped abruptly, mumbled something to herself, and the continued in the direction of the bird's calling. Elsa managed to keep up with the girl's pace. Ironically, Anna stumbled more among the jungle floor than she did. Granted, Elsa was very experienced in survival and maneuvering through the thick trees and large plants; but Anna was too. Elsa could only guess that the girl was either naturally clumsy, or she traveled more by trees than ground as an ape would.

"Get stuff, then we will go home."

"What?" Elsa blinked.

Oh.

They had arrived at their destination whilst Elsa daydreamed. She always managed to get lost in her own mind, most definitely when she sought to understand something. Kristoff would often laugh at her when she missed important information in a meeting, and the members would look at her disapprovingly. 'Kristoff….' Oh how she missed her friend dearly.

She shook her head, not allowing herself to ruin her concentration with moping and sadness. She walked out through the trees and into the clearing.

Pain.

A searing pain in her heart and watery eyes threatening to spill.

This was where it happened. The massacre.

She could still see the dead bodies of the men who volunteered to help her. The trampled tents and broken down vehicles.

This is where they abandoned her.

She didn't know it would hurt to see this. She didn't think it would be this painful.

'Alex'

The men who died. The women who died. All the good people who died. And yet she was the one who lived. The lucky one who got away. A single tear rolled down her cheek as she spun around to face the younger girl, eyes piercing with anger. Anna reacted quickly on instinct. By the time Elsa could even see the girl, her spear was up and pointing at the Hunter's face. Elsa didn't even flinch.

"Why!"

Anna tilted her head, no expression on her face.

"Why did you bring me here!"

"Get what you need, then we will go home."

"Home!?" Elsa scoffed, "My home is miles and miles away! I don't belong here, but thanks to you, I'm stuck here!"

Anna said nothing

"You brought me to the spot where you murdered my friends! My crew!"

Anna said nothing

"Why the hell, would I want to go back with you!?"

"It's not safe."

"You're not safe!"

Anna growled in frustration, lowering her weapon. "You'll need stuff. Here is that stuff." She gestured to the abandoned camp around them.

Elsa stared at her, wide-eyed in disbelief. Did this girl really not get it? Did she not understand what she did? Did she have no emotion? Not only had she killed people Elsa cared about, but she made her come back to the sight of their dead, decaying bodies. She expected Elsa to just loot their bodies and ignore the stench. Ignore their faces, and ignore their relations to her. Elsa grabbed a fistful of her blonde hair and screamed in aggravation, storming past the redhead, but in the direction of the cave. Realistically, she has no idea where she is going.

But anywhere is better than with the crazy killer.

~~000~~

"Did those fucking monsters eat them?"

Hans was in just as much shock as his men. They hadn't been off the island for longer than six days. Yet, somehow, not a single body was in sight. Not one of the dead men they left behind were there. He at least expected skeletons, but all that remained were blood stains that were halfway washed away by earlier rain, and scattered supplies, and even those had dispersed.

"If they were eaten, there'd be leftovers, max." Liam scoffed, observing the scene around him, "Hey, at least they did your job for you, wouldn't you say, Hans?"

Hans and Kristoff already didn't like the long-haired blonde, and now they weren't alone. Most of the men around glared holes into the guy, some even plotting ways they could kill him. But the smile on his face didn't falter. Instead, he found amusement in their offense.

"Well, no need to dwell on it! Let's get this show on the road, shall we?" Liam insisted, scanning to area for the perfect spot to pitch his own tent.

As much as Hans hated it, his brother was right. They didn't have time to dwell on it. The plan was to clean the beach of the bodies as much as possible, and have another ship take them back for proper burial with their families, but it appeared that that wouldn't be possible now. In lieu, he signalled for his men to help out as much as possible with setting up the new camp. They still needed to wait on the shipment to arrive, about four more days or so. For now, all they could do is find some bait to lure in their apes. Once they get the trackers installed, the faster they can get this over with.

Kristoff was far less useful in the making of the camp. Instead, he busied himself with said tracking equipment; making sure everything was in place and working. He held a needle in his hand. It was like a glass tranquilizer dart, but instead of any liquid in it, a miniscule, blinking red light was inside, barely visible. You'd have to squint really hard, covering the needle with your hands and giving it as much darkness as possible.

Kristoff could hardly believe that something this small would lead them to Elsa's location. Granted, there were three of them, but apes were huge. Getting this into all three of them and retrieving a signal would be a stunning feat.

He gently placed the needle down beside it's twins and backed away from the equipment. Sighing, he anxiously rubbed his arm and shuffled his way towards Hans, who was busy talking to five armed men. Kristoff let him finish before getting too close.

"Hans…"

Hans looked over his shoulder, the armed men walking away, "Kristoff. Just the man I needed to see." He smiled.

"When will the shipments get here?" The bigger man continued, not giving Hans the chance to elaborate.

Hans paused. Then he smiled again, "Hopefully by tomorrow. Probably the day after."

Kristoff nodded, and attempted to turn and walk away after that, but he wasn't so lucky. In an instant, Hans' hand was on his shoulder.

"Wait, Kris."

The blond photographer stopped walking, but didn't turn around.

"I'm sending a group of men out to set up security. You know, so what happened last time won't happen again? Why don't you join? It's time you be more involved."

Realistically he didn't have a choice. Hans was in charge of this whole Ideal and if he denied it, Hans probably wouldn't allow him to help when the time came to get Elsa back.

Reluctantly, he nodded. Hans' hand was lifted off his shoulders. Kristoff didn't need to turn around to know that the older man was walking away. He turned his attention to the five men loading up a jeep. Sighing, he went over to join them.

~~000~~

Here she sat…

Alone…

Against the trunk of a tree….

Drenched by the rain…

Had she been reasonable and at least waited nearby for the jungle girl to lead her back home, she'd be warm and dry in the cave. She wouldn't be surprised if she got sick. If she did, she'd be in a hell of a lot more trouble because it wasn't like could see a doctor or get medicine. She was surrounded by dirt, bugs, heat, rain, and all other types of natural enemies to a fever. The thought made her bite her lip in worry. What if Anna didn't find her? What if she got sick and it got worse over time? Anna would know how to do something to prevent that..right? She's been here for thirteen years and she has to have gotten sick at some point in that time. Elsa isn't as knowledgeable, nor prepared for such a situation...what if it led to her death?

With each thought, Elsa shrunk deeper and deeper into herself, her eyes tightly shut to prevent any fearful tears from escaping. The rain began to pour harder, so if any tears did emerge, she wouldn't know it.

She was frustrated. Scared. Angry. Confused. She wished she would have heeded the warnings of this island before she arrived. Even if it would have seemed silly to others. At least, then, she wouldn't be in this shitty situation now…

As much as she'd hate to admit it...she wasn't really mad at Anna. No. Instead, she was far more...curious. The girl's thought process had shown to be difficult to pinpoint. Elsa didn't know why Anna did what she did, and she most definitely didn't know how Anna felt blonde found herself longing to understand the girl's emotions. Did she feel remorse? Regret? Were her emotions limited to that of an ape's? Probably. The girl was a mystery. A strange discovery.

Rustle..

Snap

The sound came from the bushes a few feet in front of her. Elsa's heart dropped. She refused to move. She stayed as quiet as possible. Even her breath was barely audible. She didn't want to look up. If whatever made that sound had emerged from its hiding spot, movement might not work in her favor should it find her appetizing. Elsa bit her lip, wanting desperately to cry in this moment. She could of avoided this had she just waited.

Footsteps.

Two sets of them.

Heavy ones began to move towards her, making her quiver and sit stiffer. She choked a sob. Between every heavy step, there seemed to be a number of smaller ones following after. Elsa didn't fool herself into allowing it to reassure her. Instead, she remained stiff and painfully quiet considering the amount of crying she wanted to do.

Another step.

That one was close. So close that water and mud flung onto her arm from the puddle that was stomped on. The only way she could tell, with the heavy rains falling, were the bits of rocks and twigs that flew at her too after a loud splosh. This was it. This was her fate. Death by animal. Eaten, and mauled until her screams died out. A scream wouldn't do her any good, but at least any pent up frustrations would be released as she was dying. She'd hopefully have a clear conscious at the end of it. She'd be able to look God in the eye without any stress.

She was ready for it. Her body was so tense that, had anyone been around, they'd be able to see the veins popping from her everywhere. Elsa braced herself from inevitable death….but it was taking too long. So dreadfully long. She cursed herself and then hesitantly allowed peeked over her arms.

She was greeted by two big, pearly, beady, brown eyes, staring at her at her in wonder and awe. Elsa would be lying if she said she wasn't taken aback by this. A small, baby ape crawled closer and placed its hands on her knees, trying to get a better glimpse at the woman's face. Elsa blinked in confusion, then allowed her eyes to fall on the bigger ape behind it. The one with the heavy footsteps. She was huge, muscles rippling, and her canines were peeking from under her upper lip, a reminder that she could easily tear Elsa apart.

But she wasn't menacing.

She also seemed to hold great interest in Elsa. The softness and curiosity in her eyes made Elsa relax a little bit more. The baby caught her attention again when it climbed up onto her knees and pulled on her braid, sniffing it and rolling it back and forth in its hands. Elsa giggled, finding the courage to lift her arms -slowly- and scratch at the young ape's chin lightly with her index finger.

It seemed to be pleased, lifting its head up to give her more access and making little laughing sounds. The moment was ruined when the mother grabbed it by the scruff and placed it on her shoulder. She then turned away from Elsa, grunting repeatedly as she slapped at her back. Elsa blinked, "Do...do you want me get on too?"

'great...I'm talking to animals now.'

The ape obviously said nothing, but repeated the gesture again, this time backing up towards Elsa. At that point, the blonde believed she understood. She didn't think about whether it was smart or not to hop on a random animal, nor did she think about where it would take her. Anywhere was better than alone under a tree. This ape wasn't so tall. She was about 5'6ft on all fours -as most gorillas are- so Elsa didn't struggle to get on her. She wrapped her arms around the mother's neck and held on tight. Within seconds she found herself with her head buried between the ape's shoulder blades to avoid branches, painful winds, and annoying rain from hitting her face. Never in her life did she think she'd be riding an ape.

Elsa didn't have a watch, but it sure did feel like an hour passed before the arrived at the cave again. Elsa had never been so happy to be inside a rock structure. As soon as the mother gorilla let her down, she sprinted into the safety of the grotto. A fire was lit in the center, drawing her attention instantly. Above the fire, roasting on a stick, was some type of meat. Elsa didn't question what type, and hesitate to take it either, regardless of how painful the heat was on her fingers and tongue. She was in absolute bliss. The only thing that could snap her out of her mirthful space was the amused snort coming from the far side of the cavern.

There sat Anna, watching the scene with a smirk on her face. Behind her, against the wall, were bags and items piled up carelessly. Toothbrushes, combs, toothpastes, tissues, clothing, canned foods, swiss army knives, water bottles, flashlights, and tons of other items were included into the pile. Elsa's mind flashed back to the beach, when Anna had told her to loot the bodies of her dead comrades. She swallowed the lump in her throat -or probably just food- not allowing herself to get emotional about it again.

Anna stood up and made her way to the mother ape outside the den. Elsa watched as the redhead pulled her face close to the gorilla's and held their foreheads together, her eyes closed during the intimate moment. After seconds, she let go and the mother turned to leave. The baby ape gave a quick, mocking beat of its chest before it turned to follow.

It was quiet then. Awkwardly quiet. At least for Elsa it was...she didn't even think Anna knew what awkward felt like. She watched as the redhead sat on the other side of the fire, arms folded over her chest as she leaned against the stone walls. The girl's eyes were closed, and Elsa could tell she was drifting off to sleep.

"Anna."

Her eyes opened.

Elsa hesitated. Should she apologize for earlier? Did she even need to? She decided to start with something other than the one sided elephant in the room, "Did...did you send them out to find me?"

"Yes."

As she thought. She was thankful, of course. Elsa would rather be in the cave than lost and in danger. The redhead was kind to do such a thing, definitely after the argument prior to the blonde getting lost. The question now was just-

"Why?"

Anna blinked. The expression on her face read 'isn't it obvious?' "It's bad if you're alone."

"Why are you keeping me safe?"

That seemed to be the first time Elsa actually stunted the red head. Anna was surprised. Elsa knew it wasn't because of the question. No, Anna was smart enough to expect that. It was because they both knew she didn't have an answer.

"I don't know."

Elsa nodded. Not because she was satisfied, but because there was nothing else that needed to be said in regards to that topic. So she started a new one, one that she's wanted to bring up for a while now. "How do you communicate the apes?"

Anna blinked again, confused.

Elsa mentally face palmed, 'right' she thought, '13 years without education'

She elaborated, "How do you talk to the gorillas?"

"Gorillas don't talk."

'Oh, for fuck's sake,' "I know," Elsa sighed, "but you know how to talk to them, and they understand you. I want to know how."

Anna thought for a second, "they use their bodies. They yell. I learned how to do it too."

Elsa bit her lip. She didn't know how long she'd be here, or if she'd ever leave…

She had to ask.

"...can you teach me?"

Anna did her signature head tilt, observing the blonde carefully. She was probably wondering why Elsa would be interested in such a thing. Nonetheless, the amount of silence and the length of time that passed made Elsa instantly regret asking.

"Nevermind," She rushed. "It was a dumb question."

Anna said nothing. She just continued to watch the blonde. Elsa shrunk under the heavy gaze. Suddenly, Anna stood up and made her way to the giant pile of supplies. Digging through, she managed to pull out a cloth roll. She brought it to Elsa and unrolled it.

"A...sleeping bag?" Elsa questioned. "Um, thanks."

It was genuine. She really didn't want to sleep on the hard rock again. She adjusted herself so that she fit comfortably in the bed roll. Anna made her way back to her spot against the wall, her arms once again folded across her chest. Why she didn't get herself a sleeping bag, Elsa didn't know. But she refrained from anymore questions. Anna closed her eyes. There was a moment of silence before Elsa spoke up again.

"I'm sorry."

Anna's eyes remained closed.

"For lashing out on you and getting lost." Elsa continued.

After a moment, the jungle girl peeked one eye open. She looked at Elsa only for a second, then she closed it back. Elsa didn't know how to take that. In lieu of saying anything further, she turned her back to the redhead, and closed her eyes to sleep.

That was when Anna spoke.

"I killed your friends."

Elsa held her breath at the already known confession. It was not what she expected to hear. She tilted her head slightly to look at the ginger behind her. She couldn't see much over her shoulder, but she could hear the shuffling. It went quiet for just a moment, but Elsa didn't stop waiting. It was only when her neck grew stiff and achy that she allowed her head to drop. It was then when her waiting proved meaningful.

"I'm sorry."

And with that, Anna went off to sleep.

And Elsa lay there, staring at the wall before her, with a small smile on her face. She didn't know why the apology meant so much to her. But it did. And for moment, she didn't mind being stuck there with the girl. In fact, she found herself looking forward to another day.


	11. Conversion

Another day, another minute of hating her life. Elsa groaned as she sat up. Her back was all types of sore, and popping to no end. The amount of stiffness she felt reminded her of how good she had it back at home. She'd never complain about sleep or food again. Things like this can really make a rich girl change. On the bright side, the day was far more breezy than usual, which meant no scorching heats and horrible bodily odors. Elsa inhaled deeply as the next wave of fresh, cool, nature smelling wind came blowing through the cave. It felt like the middle of spring. Although, she's sure seasons don't make a difference here. They were still on an island in south Africa. So today was most likely nature giving her a break, only to return to its hellish heat twenty-four hours later. Regardless, she wouldn't waste this wonderful weather inside some stuffy cave.

A small noise came from the entrance of the cavern. Elsa had expected to see a familiar head of red hair when she looked up, but instead she was pleasantly greeted with a body of dark brown. A smile formed on her lips as the small ape from last night slowly stalked its way into the cave, hesitant to get too close to Elsa. It was truly adorable.

It crept closer and closer, and once it was at her legs, it crawled up and sat on her thigh. She could see now that it was a boy; A cute little boy, at that. She cautiously reached out -careful not to scare him away- and tickled the little hairs on his chest with the very tip of her finger. He looked down at the digit. His small hand came up and grabbed onto her finger, pulling it up to his face. He was observing it. He placed his small palm against hers and let out a squeak. Elsa wanted to die of cuteness in that moment.

He suddenly let her finger go and began to jump up and down on her leg, letting out little howls here and there. The blonde woman was confused, but that didn't stop the smile from forming on her face. She giggled as she watched him continue his antics.

"He likes you."

Elsa gasped, her head shooting up to look to her side. Right next to her, was Anna. Damn, that girl was quick and quiet. It was actually terrifying now that Elsa thought about it. This girl, who was capable of murder, was extremely stealthy. That in itself was enough information to make anyone steer clear of her. It forced shivers down the blonde's spine.

"E-excuse me?" Elsa shifted uncomfortably as the little ape boy slapped his hand against her knee.

"Now he wants your attention." Anna was still; unmoving. She didn't even look at Elsa, only at the baby ape.

Elsa did the same, turning towards the adorable creature. Anna was right. Once Elsa made eye contact with him, his face lit up and he leaped onto her chest, hands holding onto her shoulders and feet clinging to her shirt. He bounced up and down, hooting and squeaking. Elsa giggled and reached to grab him. She carefully wrapped her arms around him and placed him on her shoulders.

"You can go to the grass place." Anna suggested.

"What?" Elsa kept one hand up beside the baby ape to ensure that he wouldn't fall off. Even though his species is great with climbing and parkour.

"He wants to play, so go to the grass place. More space. Soft ground."

Elsa blinked. "O...okay." She turned back to the baby gorilla and -once again- tickled its chest with her finger. She made her way to the mouth of the cave.

Anna walked with her to the field, staying ahead of Elsa to lead and make sure the blonde actually made it to the right area. After a few minutes of trudging through thick bushes and heavy vines, slick muds and hard rocks; they finally came upon the open grasslands Anna was talking about.

Elsa remembered this place. Anna had nearly beat the hell out of her here. Elsa recognized the step shaped stones enclosing the area, making it look like one of those roman gladiator arenas.

The baby ape jumped from her shoulders. As soon as he hit the ground, he sprinted around the fields hooting and hollering in joy. Elsa giggled and walked further to the center of the green. She squatted down and held her hand out. The baby ape didn't waste a second as he bolted towards her and leaped onto her shoulder again, this time scurrying around her body and tickling her in the process. Elsa laughed as she tried to grab him. Eventually, he made his way to her head, letting out a satisfied little "hoooo" as he plopped down on top of it; his arms were dangling loose in front of her head.

"You're a cute little one." Elsa hummed. The ape squeaked in response. Elsa smiled. "You need a name. I need to call you something." His head perked up and tilted to the side in wonder. Elsa thought, her lips pursed. She looked at Anna -who looked incredibly bored in this moment- and then back up to the ape.

"What about, Agdar?"

Silence.

Stealing a glance at the redhead, she could see the look of terror on her face. Which is not at all what Elsa expected. She had assumed Anna would be sentimental. Instead, the younger girl looked somewhat angry and scared. Elsa had only been here for about a few weeks, but she felt that She and Anna had become less hostile towards each other over that time. Maybe she was wrong? Maybe Anna still wasn't as comfortable with Elsa as she thought.

"No." The redhead said.

"Why not." Elsa reached up pulling the little ape off of her head and cradling him in her arms. "Don't you want to honor your father."

"It's a bad name." Anna crossed her arms in agitation, her spear -in which she literally never left behind- making it very difficult for her to do so.

"It's your father's name." Elsa pointed out.

"Papa is dead. His name is dead. His name is bad. Agdar is deadly name." Anna deadpanned, shoving her spear into the dirt.

Elsa chuckled, "Anna, I can assure you that that is not how that works." Elsa looked down at the baby ape and tickled his chest with her finger. "I think Agdar is a great name. This little guy will be fine. Strong, brave, and okay."

Anna looked at the ape and then at Elsa. She didn't take her eyes off of her for a while. In lieu, she sighed, groaning out, "Fine." and pulled her spear out of the ground. It was then that she took her eyes off of the blonde. Not because she was done observing her, but because they were startled by a loud roar. Well...Elsa was startled. Anna was completely unfazed.

Little Agdar leaped from Elsa's arms and ran towards the roar. Elsa reached out in worry but Anna grabbed her arm to keep her from going anywhere. Out of the bushes -the only way in and out of the fields- came a larger ape; a grown ape. Agdar, once at the feet of his larger companion, climbed up their arm and snuggled into their neck.

"His mother." Anna informed the older woman simply.

Elsa wasn't surprised, even though she couldn't tell. They all look the same.

Agdar's mom stalked further into the pastures in the most intimidating way Elsa had ever witnessed a monkey walk. Once she was before them, Anna took a step closer and placed a hand on the Gorilla's arm. Anna took her other hand and held her palm out in a "stop" like motion, then moved the same hand to block off Elsa from the Gorilla's path, which instantly put Elsa at alarm.

The Gorilla huffed, but eventually backed off. Little Agdar took that moment to jump down and jump back onto Elsa. Anna turned and waved Elsa closer to her and the Mother Ape. Elsa was hesitant of course, but obliged nonetheless.

Once Elsa was beside her redheaded partner, Anna grabbed her right arm and held it out to touch the mother's arm. Elsa instantly pulled back; but the sudden movement startled the ape, causing her begin howling aggressively. Elsa backed away in fear, and Agdar jumped down to return to his mother.

Anna quickly put herself between the blonde and the mother, making a "shh" noise in attempt to calm the mother down. It slowly worked. The mother, eyes glued on Elsa, began to pant and huff, but stopped moving and stopped howling. Anna, after she was sure the mother was calm, looked behind at Elsa with a seriousness that sent a chill down the blonde's spine.

"Come back, stay calm." Anna ordered.

Elsa really didn't want to. Like, she really didn't want to; but she did, reluctantly. She turned sideways and allowed Anna to guide her hand again. This time, Elsa tried to physically distance her body from her arm and the Mother. Slowly but surely, her fingers made contact with the dirty black fur. She'd be as afraid as last time if this time she didn't feel slim fingers wrap lightly around her waist. Elsa blushed. She knew Anna was holding her waist so that she didn't jolt backwards in fear this time, but Elsa couldn't help but to feel a little flustered…however, that feeling went away when Anna slowly let go, and backed away; Elsa was once again aware of the mother ape before her. She stiffened once she realized Anna was no longer beside her.

'The hell?' Elsa thought 'Get back here!'

Thankfully, Anna wasn't really leaving. She was only going to Elsa's other side. She stood beside the blonde and grabbed her left, unused arm. "Make this." Anna held her palm up in the "Stop" motion once again, and this time Elsa followed suit. She was still confused.

"Okay," Anna continued, "This means wait; or to stop. Stay there." Anna then grabbed Elsa's left arm and positioned it so that it was straight out to her side, separating the Mother and Anna. "This means do not hurt me. I am friend; or leave me alone."

It took Elsa a while to understand what was happening, but when she did a bright smile made its way to her face. She remembered the night before when she asked Anna to teach her how to communicate with the apes. She had assumed Anna would deny it when she gave the blonde a blank stare in lieu of an answer. Apparently not. This was happening. She was learning how to communicate with apes. It's far more exciting than one would think; definitely when you're a huntress. She knew a lot about animals; habitats, habits, and how to handle them. Everything she need to know, she knew. Communication, however, was something she always wanted to be able to do; with monkeys of course. They're the only ones who can really communicate.

A smile formed on Anna's face in response to Elsa's. She didn't know why, but she couldn't help it. It took her seconds to get her mind back on track. "Look in her eyes. They like to see your eyes."

Elsa did as she was told. She looked into the Mother's eyes, and sure enough the mother relaxed more. It was then that Agdar leaped down and climbed back up Elsa. The mother snorted and backed away.

"She's liking you." Anna informed, "you're done now."

Elsa dropped her arms, turned around, and threw them around Anna, a smile coming back to her face. "Thank you!"

Anna stiffened. It had been a while since human contact, and she wasn't used to hearing a woman squeal so high. "Yes." Anna nodded. She didn't return the hug. Instead, she slowly backed out of it, looking around for her spear. She dropped it to address the mother ape.

"I'll return the favor." Elsa promised, unable to accept anything from anyone without repaying them back. "I'll do something for you, because you did something for me."

Anna tilted her head, curious as to what she could probably get out of this. She took her spear and placed it behind her head, propped up on her shoulders. She slung her arms over the back of it so that they dangled forward. Elsa's expression was thoughtful for only a few seconds. Her eyes landed on the spear.

"...your spear…" Elsa brought her hand out as if to grab the item herself. Almost immediately, she brought it back down. "How would you feel if I were to enhance it?"

Anna blinked.

"I can make your stick stronger and sharper." Elsa restated, a small smirk on her face.

Anna's eyes lit up with understanding. She pulled her spear off of her shoulders and held it out before her. She smiled and nodded, knowing that the weapon was horribly dulled and needed attention anyway. She handed the spear to Elsa. Elsa took it, inspecting it as soon as it touched her hands. Agdar, on top of her head, using her shoulders to keep him standing, observed as well.

Elsa hummed. "I'm sure I can find some useful tools in the loot stash you have in the back of the cave. We had some engineers with us when we came here, so I wouldn't doubt it."

Anna abruptly jumped at the statement, startling Elsa and Agdar. The redhead swiftly grabbed her spear and made her way to the brussels and bushes that made up the only entrance to the open pastures they stood in. Elsa unconsciously began to follow, confusion etched on her face. The mother gorilla could be heard following as well. Anna halted and turned to face them, making all three -technically two- come to a halt. "I have to go." She stated simply.

Before Elsa could rebuttal, the red head was gone, sprinting past the ferns and bushes and away into the jungle. Elsa blinked, making eye contact with Agdar and then looking back at the direction in which Anna ran. She sighed, making her way through the bushes herself. "Well, on that note, I think I'm gonna go wash up." Elsa said to no one in particular.

The mother ape grunted and followed suit. Elsa was grateful, for if another animal found her appetizing, she would have some type of protection. Maybe when she begins working on Anna's spear, she can create her own type of defense. Or maybe Anna could teach her how to fight with a spear too. Elsa smiled. Somehow the thought of spending more time with the girl no longer troubled her, or made her uncomfortable. She actually looked forward to it.

~~000~~

Kristoff watched as his crew slowly exited the vehicle. The five men immediately got to work setting up cameras and security systems along the makeshift boarder Hans mapped out for them; and by mapped out, he meant a brief explanation on how to figure it out themselves. They were given the distance from the camp, but nothing else. So basically, they barely had a clue on what they were doing. That didn't deter them though, for they continued to untangle wires and cords to wrap them around the trees and hook up the cameras. They had a whole crate of equipment; cameras, wires, trip-wires, sensors, bear traps, and even drones. This time, if anything were to happen, they'd be ready.

"So are you just gonna sit there? Or are you gonna be useful, picture boy." One of the men growled at him. It was an older man. A way older man. He seemed to be around his mid forties or so. His black beard was long and thick, and his oily, matching hair was slicked back into a man bun. He was a big guy, just as big as Kristoff.

"Sorry." Kristoff mumbled as he stepped out of the vehicle. He shuffled his way to the big crate of equipment. He grabbed onto a camera and a cord, pulling them out of the box and dragging them over to a random tree. He hadn't a clue what he was going to do with them, and apparently, it was very obvious…

"The hell are ya doin'? You aren't supposed to- damn it, just hand it over." The same man growled again, storming over to Kristoff and grabbing the items from his hand. Kristoff let him do so without any resistance. "What's the point of coming along if you don't know how to do shit?"

"Come on, Pete." Another man laughed. He was a younger, handsome boy with curly red hair. "Cut the lad some slack, he ain't never done this before." His scottish accent made him sound naturally chipper and welcoming.

"Exactly. So why the hell's he got to be with us? I ain't got time for no babysittin'..." Pete, the deep voiced brute, complained.

It was as if Kristoff wasn't there, even though they were talking about him. He remained quiet throughout this discussion. The scottish man laughed, turning away from the security camera he was setting up to walk over and pat Kristoff on the back. "Don't mind him laddie, the man's like that with every new guy." He held out his hand, "The name's Hamish."

"Kristoff eyed the man's limb, not a huge fan of physical contact. Nor any type of social situation. Nevertheless, he grabbed onto the scottish man's hand with a tight grip and shook. "The name is Kristoff."

Hamish chuckled, "I know who ya are."

"If you two bitches are done with your date, I have some cameras up here that need to be handled." Pete called out

Hamish snorted, patting Kristoff on the shoulder again before reaching into the crate for another camera and wire and placing them in the blond man's hands. "Come with me, lad. I'll show ya how ta hook these up."

Kristoff nodded slowly, still a bit uncomfortable with having to talk to this man, but a bit desperate to get this over with. They made their way to a tree and Hamish began to climb it, placing the camera in a spot where it was unlikely to topple over.

"Place the camera anywhere high, and make sure it's nice and snug, then wrap the cord down the tree like so…" He began to climb back down whilst simultaneously wrapping the cord around the trunk of the tree. "And once ya get to the bottom, connect the cord to this sensor here and bury the sensor under some dirt. Not too deep or it can't send signals to the computers back at the camp."

"I…" Kristoff thought carefully about how he was going to word this. There was one huge flaw in this whole assignment and he was sure he had fucked up the minute Hamish said tree. "I can't climb."

"Oh that's fucking great," Pete laughed from behind, "Someone tell me why he came again?"

"Oh, would ya leave the lad alone?" Hamish snapped, "He ain't done nothin' to ya, there's no need to piss all over his foot."

"He's wastin' my time is what he's doin'!" Pete stormed up to their tree, a camera cord clutched in his hands. "The less he does, the longer it takes!"

"Fuck off and handle yer own cameras and we wouldn't need ta worry about time!"

"I am handling my shit! He needs to handle his! What? Do you wanna be the next meal to some ape? I know I don't!"

Hamish smiled. "I don't think they eat their own kind now, Petey."

The bigger man's face reddened, and he kicked the tree Hamish was leaning on. "You think you're so fucking invincible, rich boy? Don't piss me off unless you wanna be my punching bag."

"Eh," Hamish shrugged, pushing himself off the tree and dusting himself off, "I'm more worried about being dinner to yer family."

"I'm warning you Hamish, fucking watch it."

Hamish scoffed, "Whatever ya say tough guy." He looked to Kristoff and waved him over to help set up the next camera. Pete grunted and returned to his own.

As time went on, Kristoff developed his own flow and style of assistance. Hamish gave him a quick step by step on how to climb a tree -Kristoff would be sure to repay him later- and soon he found himself putting up cameras like it was nothing. It was quite a peaceful task, now that Pete was no longer yelling at him. In lieu, he would occasionally look Kristoff's way and mumble before continuing on with his set up.

When they were about finished, the sun had already been setting. Everyone began to make their way back to the jeep, careful to step over any tripwires they set up. Kristoff walked beside Hamish, the redheaded man telling Kristoff a little bit more about who he was. Apparently, Hamish came from a very wealthy family. There was his mother and father, Elinor and Fergus; then his older sister Merida, along with him and his other twin brothers Harris and Hubert. He, his brothers, and his sister were called to help with the search. His sister is supposedly the best Archer in all of scotland and even won seven gold medals since the age of ten, two of those medals being from the olympic games.

She was asked to be some sort of help against any other attack on the camp. Along with hunting.

Hamish and his brothers were just amazing trackers. They'd been tracking since they were kids. They could track animals and people, and would be assisting with the search for Elsa. It brought some peace to Kristoff's mind knowing that Hans was going out of his way to get the best of the best to find the girl. It restored some hope in the blond man's heart.

The five man broke past the ferns that separated them from their jeep and prepared to throw their items into the now empty crate.

They came to a halt within eight feet of the vehicle.

In the jeep, there lay two leopards.

Two hungry leopards.

No one moved a muscle. They were too afraid to, as well as the fact that they weren't dumb enough to.

"Fuck fuck fuck!" Pete hissed under his breath. "We need a gun! Who's got a gun!?"

"I only carry a bow and arrow with me," Hamish whispered, "And it's left at the camp."

"Nice goin' genius, why the fuck would ya do that!" Pete growled at him.

"Do ya have yers?" Hamish scoffed. Pete huffed, turning to the other three men. He spotted a holstered pistol on the man furthest from him.

"Pst," He addressed the guy, "Hey, you- yes you! Use that gun of yours so we can get out of here!"

The man was young. A blonde boy with a baby face. Possibly younger than twenty one. Possibly regretting his choice to be here. He didn't move. He simply looked back and forth between his waist and Pete. He was terrified, and it was visibly obvious.

"Listen," Hamish softly spoke, "We know yer scared, and we are too ya know. But we need to ta be brave fer a second, and whip out ya weapon. One shot or two should do the job. Be the hero, kid."

The boy whimpered. Everyone waited in anticipation and fear as they watched his hand slowly descend to the holstered gun. It was like watching a suspenseful movie where you and your friends are practically leaning forward in your seats, grasping on to the hand rests and holding your breath. Except this was real, and their lives were at stake. His hand determined whether or not they would make it out of there alive. Slowly it lowered, and slowly it unhooked the handgun. As he pulled it out, each man held his breath. The boy's hand was shaking, and sweat was practically pouring everywhere on him. The leopards paid him no mind as they continued to scavenge the jeep.

Each man felt freedom and safety at the tip of their fingers. Smiles were forming on their faces. Home was just within their grasp, and soon they'd be at the camp and laughing this moment off. They could each taste the chicken being cooked miles away from here, and feel the beds being made within their tents. The boy finally aimed the gun…

And he finally pulled the trigger.

But his hands never stopped shaking

And his sweat never stopped pouring

So the bullet never stopped flying

The men's eyes widened in terror as their eyes met the leopards'. The slender beasts stared the men down, their tongues rolling out and sliding across their muzzles, coating it with warm saliva that dripped onto jungle ground and made their canines glisten in the hot sun's rays. The sight made the men's knees grow weak, and throats run dry.

"Shoot…" Pete hissed.

The boy was frozen

"Shoot them dumbass!"

He began to hyperventilate

"FUCKING SHOOT THE-"

The boy's quickened breaths became a scream that lasted only a second before being abruptly ended as one of the leopards pounced and wrapped its jaws around his neck. What were clear cries for help became gurgles and coughs of blood.

That's when chaos ensued. The all the men -excluding the boy- began hollering and running. Hamish ran for a tree, climbing up as fast as possible. The other two random men in the group scattered, and searched for anything they could to help them defend themselves. Unfortunately, one of them couldn't search fast enough as the other leopard latched onto his back and bit down hard into his neck. He screamed, crying out for someone to help as the leopard bit down into the back of his neck and tore it apart, feasting happily onto its newfound meal. The man's cries continued.

Pete made a break for the jeep, leaping into the driver's seat and starting up the vehicle. "Come on, come on…" he silently pleaded as the car revved continuously.

"Pete!" Hamish called out

Pete glanced up at the man and instantly froze. The sound of ragged breathing, and feel of hot and moist breath on his neck made his blood run cold. He swallowed, considering the option of running. That option was immediately destroyed when the second leopard crawled up the front of the jeep, teeth stained with blood and bits of flesh hanging from it's jaw. Pete shakilly looked to the side of the jeep to witness the murder of the boy and one of the other men. The third one was nowhere to be seen. Hamish was still in the tree and Kristoff was standing in the same spot he had always been. He was frozen in fear and completely still. The leopards had skipped over him, far more interested with the pray that moved. Pete swallowed and hissed, "Hey, get the gun...please…"

Kristoff blinked, unable to comprehend anything in that moment.

"Look, I'm sorry for being a dick, but please! D-don't let them get me...please…"

Kristoff's eyes lowered to the hand gun clasped in the dead boy's hand. His jaw clenched.

"Hey, please…" Tears began to fall down Pete's face as the leopards got closer.

Kristoff looked up at Pete.

Their eyes met.

"please..." within a second, the leopards were on him

~~000~~

Anna half wiped the dirt off her skin as she walked up the stone like steps to her den. It was a useless action considering the dirt was dried and dusty, and would require water to be removed. She would have to take a swim tomorrow to properly clean herself, but for now she'd rather just go to sleep, even if it were still daytime.

She grumbled to herself about her aching arms as she came to the entrance of the cave. She never entered; she was stopped in her tracks by the sight of a young blonde woman and a baby gorilla. Anna tilted her head in curiosity as she watched the blonde giggle while Agdar crawled all over her.

She was pretty, the Elsa woman. Very pretty. Anna wished she could be that pretty.

The redhead looked down at her dirtied arms and frowned. She was so different from this woman. She looked back up at Elsa. The blonde was smiling, but was she happy? Why did Anna take her? Why didn't she leave her where she found her? Would she have been happier? Why didn't Elsa hate her? Ever since she found out who Anna was, she's been nicer.

Elsa squeaked as Agdar squeezed through the bottom of her shirt and reappeared; popping his head through the collar and meeting the blonde face to face.

'Cute' Anna thought. She decided that was the time to enter the cave, walking up to the blonde and her new companion.

Elsa looked up, the joyous smile of her face becoming more welcoming as she saw the redead walking up to her. "Hello again."

Anna gave a quick nod of greeting before she sat on the other side of the cave, far from Elsa. She laid her back against the cold stone ground, closed her eyes, and let out a sigh of relief. For a moment, everything was quiet -save for Agdar squealing in the background. The only other sounds were the winds outside and Elsa's soft breathing. Having adapted to the feral lifestyle, Anna's senses were undeniably better than most humans. She could hear things further away than anyone else can, smell things better than anyone else can, see things clearer than anyone else can, and her reflexes were impeccable. She was quick, quiet, and ruthless. She had to be, otherwise she wouldn't be alive….but she was still human. Right?...no. The real question she wanted to know was whether or not she was just like Elsa.

And she wasn't.

She sighed; opening her eyes when she caught the sound of movement and the feeling of a presence closer than before. She turned her head to meet Elsa, who sat now only a few feet away. The woman was holding Anna's wooden spear, running her hands over it as she observed it's features. She then looked towards the back of the cave at all of the gear Anna had looted off of the beach. Elsa stood up and walked over to it, rummaging through the pile for only a few minutes before coming back to her spot by the spear with multiple items. Anna sat up, interested in the display as she watched Elsa stand up again to leave the cave -a loud squeal could be heard after seconds- and return with a long vine.

The blonde woman got to work, and Anna didn't take her eyes off of the blonde for a second. It was quiet for a whole hour. Even Agdar had fallen asleep beside Elsa's waist. Elsa fiddled, twisted, sharpened, molded, and cleaned for the entirety of that time, and Anna observed. Finally, the blonde's hands pulled away from the spear to observe her work. What used to be a long sharpened stick, was now a thinner stick with a very sharp metallic point, connected to its body by the vine which wrapped fully around the spear. The end of the spear had a smaller but just as sharp knife connected. Now the redheaded girl could do damage on both ends.

Anna observed with awe, taking the spear back into her hands. She ran her fingers lightly across the wood and around the vine; carefully touching the tips of both ends of the weapon. The small smile never left her face; and a bigger one never left Elsa's.

After a few moments, the girl looked up at Elsa. Elsa assumed it was going to be a thank you.

"Let me ask something." the younger woman said instead.

Elsa blinked, rather curious to what the girl wanted to possibly know. "Okay…" She sat up straight, looking Anna in her teal eyes, "One question." Elsa smirked, having taken their normal 'three question rule' down to one.

Anna snorted, but obliged regardless. "Why are you nice now?"

"Excuse me?"

"You did not like me first. Now you are nice to me." Anna began to fiddle with her fingers, eyes avoiding Elsa's. It was the most adorable thing the blonde swore she had ever seen.

"I...I didn't know who you were at first." Elsa answered.

"I hurt your friends." Their eyes met again.

"You were trapped here since childhood and endured things I could never fathom. I don't think for a second that you are an evil being. You just have another view on things." Elsa had leaned forward during her assurance. Their faces were now closer than before.

Anna blinked, her face showing confusion and flushed red. Elsa hesitated, pulling back and clearing her throat. "You are not bad, Anna." Elsa clarified, knowing that the girl's vocabulary was still limited and she would struggle with understanding that whole speech. Maybe they could change that.

Elsa froze. Just...just how long did she think she would be here? Apparently long enough to teach a girl the contents of a dictionary. She had already unconsciously came to terms with her predicament. Had she given up on life outside of this heated island? Did she give up on Kristoff? Hans? Everything?

The thought seemed scary of course, and even made her stomach knot up; yet, she wasn't sad or broken up about it. She didn't think she'd mind being here for a while. All the things she could learn? Discover? Do? The fact that she was willing to stay was what scared her most if she were honest. Because at the bottom of it all, beneath all the other benefits….she knew it was because she would get to know Anna more. The idea of leaving and never seeing the girl again was far more depressing and she'd only been here for about a week and a half. What would she do if the opportunity to leave showed up? Would she abandon the girl? ...would she stay?

bang

Bang

Elsa was shaken out of her thoughts. She looked towards the entrance of the cave confusion etched on her face. She then looked towards the redhead. Anna's expression made her blood run cold. The younger woman went from an adorable nervous girl to a livid body of violence. Her hands were clenched around her newly improved spear and her eyes went pinprick. Before Elsa could get a word off, Anna bolted out of the cave, leaping off of the ledge of the cave. The cavern was carved into a mountain, and there was a pathway that led from the entrance to the ground. However, Anna found the faster route to be straight down; and instead of taking that route, Elsa watched her throw herself from the ledge. The blonde jumped up and ran out to ensure that the girl would be okay. By the time she got to the edge, she could see the redhead swinging from a nearby vine to another tree, and then another, and then another. She was a woman out for blood. Elsa knew that look, and she knew that sound. Someone Else was on the island.

Elsa didn't dare follow.

~~000~~

Pete sat in the seat of the truck, breathing heavily as he clutched the wound on his shoulder. "What the FUCK is wrong with you!?" He screamed as Kristoff shakilly got into the back seat. Hamish followed suit, getting into the driver's seat now that Pete had moved towards the back with the help of the only other survivor they had. It was a man around Pete's own age. He had ran and hidden a few feet away from the chaos, and only came out once he saw that the leopards had been dealt with. One lay dead on the outside of the vehicle, near the tires. The other ran off deep into the forest.

"You're alive, right? Stop yer whining then!" Hamish scoffed at the man as he started the car.

"I was barely fucking alive! He let those mother fuckers BITE me!" Pete gestured to the large bleeding gash in his shoulder.

"He should've let them kill ya." the other man mumbled. Hamish turned the jeep around and headed back toward the camp, making sure to run over and reverse on the body of the dead leopard a few times for his own sick entertainment, mumbling some "fuck you"s as he did so.

Kristoff's mind was elsewhere as the made their way through the jungle. Officially he had his first kill ever. He did it. He ended a creature's life. Should he be proud of that? Maybe. Maybe not. I mean, it was just an animal, right? It wasn't like he killed another man, woman, or child. It wasn't like he committed murder. It was in self defense, he had a right to defend his life. Then again, it was an animal so it wasn't that deep.

Yet he still felt odd.

He didn't feel the same knowing that he had pulled a trigger and killed something.

The time passed swiftly whilst he struggled in his mind, and when Hans came up to greet them Kristoff said nothing. He didn't even look at the man. Instead, he walked towards his tent the minute he exited the jeep. One might call him a woman for reacting so dramatically; but the killing isn't what really got to him. It was the meaning. The fact that he pulled that trigger and killed that creature was enough for him to realize that, figuratively, he just signed a contract. A contract that imprisoned him on this island and involved him in this war. Pulling that trigger put him in a position where he'd have to fight along sides Hans if anything were to go down...if. If it went down…

So maybe he doesn't have to do anything.

Maybe nothing will happen, and he wouldn't have to play the role of a mercenary...or soldier...or whatever he'd be considered.

It was a lot to think about, and a lot of stress on his mind.

He dropped down on his bed, groaning and placing his arm over his eyes. It was coming to a point where he just didn't care anymore. He didn't care what was going to happen. Maybe he'd be expected to hold a gun and shoot at anything he's told to, or maybe Hans will give him a break and allow him to sit back and do nothing. That sounded wonderful. Doing nothing. He was stressed he couldn't think about anything, so why do anything?

The blond man groaned once more, closing his eyes and begging himself to go unconscious.

~~000~~

Anna panted heavily, willing herself to endure the pain for only a while longer. She could find a way out of this...this...whatever the hell this entrapment was. She looked down hat her leg, and the ankle caught within a steel trap of blades. It looked like jaws, and it clamped down on her ankles just like one. It hurt...bad. The redhead swallowed, glaring at the trail beside her that led off towards the same beach she'd visited before. Her eyes dragged onwards to look at the dead and flattened jaguar, guts spilled everywhere, and bones snapped and protruding from its body.

An anger like no other boiled inside of her. She clenched her spear harder, almost snapping it in her hands.

Snap

...That wasn't the spear.

Anna's head shot around towards the noise. She crouched into a defensive position by habit, a wave of pain surging through her leg from the movement. She bit her tongue to prevent herself from yelping. Her eyes stayed glued on the area before her. Sweat was rolling down her temples, and her mind instantly went to Elsa. Would she be okay? Anna had to get back to the girl. Elsa wouldn't survive long without her. Anna readied herself for whatever was waiting on the other side of those ferns and bushes.

She growled at the sight of the red man.


	12. For You and For Me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Updates will be slow now that I have AIT. I graduate within 3 weeks so please be patient (Unless i'm immediately deployed for WW3)

Who the hell was this girl and why was she out here like this!? Hans thought as he emerged from the bushes. Her leg was caught in his bear trap. She was hunched over in pain, and a large, sharp stick was tightly held in her hands and clutched against her body; she looked -and literally was- like an animal caught in a trap. Hans glanced around at the few men he brought with him. They were just as surprised as he was. Here was a girl who looked younger than all of them, half naked, leg wounded and bleeding in a painful trap, and obviously prepared for a fight. She looked as if she'd been on this island for a while, actually. There were markings on her face, similar to that of a football player. She had oversized camouflage pants on, and some type of cloth or bandage wrapped around her pants legs to keep them tight against her shins and unable to get caught in anything.

Whoever this primitive, yet slightly modernized being was, she was hurt and needed help. Hans took a step forward. He held one hand out towards her, but remained cautious. He didn't want to spook her.

"Hi there...are you okay?"

The red haired girl shrunk further into herself, wincing slightly at the pain in her leg from the movement. Hans paused for a second before slowly continuing.

"Please, don't be afraid. We want to help you." Those words seemed to do nothing to calm her. She remained rigid. Once he got close enough to actually do something, she thrusted her spear out at him, barely grazing his chest as he jumped back. "Shit!"

"Mr. West!" One of his men called out in worry.

Hans hissed, lightly touching at the cut. He looked up at the girl and shook his head. She didn't seem like she was going to relax, let alone let them help. Hans turned to one of his men. "You, tranquilize her. We'll free her and reset the traps."

The man nodded and lifted his rifle, pointing it straight at the girl. She didn't cower, nor did she look away from the man's eyes as he pulled the trigger. She didn't even flinch as the tranquilizer hit her shoulder, but she did waver...and she did fall. The dose put into the dart was originally supposed to be enough to take out a gorilla. For a human, it was an instant knockout.

Another one of the men proceeded to free her wounded leg from the trap. He waved over one of his teammates. They retrieved a medical kit from the bag the man had and got to work on the girl's leg. Hans watched from afar.

Now that he thought about it, this girl managed to survive out here for so long...she must have some sort of camp set up somewhere. It could possibly have other people there. In fact...this could probably benefit him in the long run. There was a tracker in the dart they used on her. He reminded himself to check in on it the next morning, and hopefully she'd have made it back to wherever she was staying by then.

The men finished up, adjusting her body in a less straining position. They looked up to their boss for further instruction.

"Reset the traps." He pointed over his shoulder in the direction behind him, "Leave her here and let's go home."

The men looked at each other, hesitantly obeying their boss' order and leaving the redheaded girl on the ground and setting the traps back up.

Hans left them behind, making his way back to the jeep they drove over to this destination. This was getting exhausting, as if this whole situation wasn't exhausting enough. Back and forth and back and forth they went on a mission to find a missing huntress; let alone to get her to give him the island. He felt slightly bad that he had an alternate motive to finding her rather than it being because he cared for her...but she'd understand, right? This was his family; his family in which he had always sought to belong. Elsa was kind and reasonable. She'd most definitely understand. She'd might even give him the island without hesitation.

Hans sighed. This would all go according to plan, he was sure. He didn't need to worry. This mission was made for him, and he was made for this mission. Damn Liam, and anyone else who didn't believe in him.

"Elsa," He jumped in the driver's seat of the jeep, slamming the door shut and gripping the wheel tightly, "I'm coming for you."

He didn't even recognize that he didn't know why anymore. For her? Or for him?

~~000~~

Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck!

Elsa paced back and forth in the now chilling cave. It was nearly midnight, she assumed, and Anna hadn't stepped foot in this cavern. Should she search for her? No. Anna knew this part of the jungle fairly well, she'd know her way back home. If Elsa were to just leave and get lost she'd cause more problems for the possibly already frustrated redhead.

'Pain...Pain...ouch. Home, gotta get home.'

The way she ran out when she heard that gunshot...Elsa had only seen that look once, and she had been on the receiving end of it. It was a deathly glare, one that shook her to the bone. One that made her want to drop everything and run; an animalistic stare with animalistic eyes. What more should she expect from the barbaric woman. Just that thought alone gave Elsa just a bit more confidence that Anna was okay. She was tough and terrifying. She wouldn't go out so easily...right?

'almost...there...home...tired...pain...Elsa?'

A part of the Blonde felt guilty for having jumped with excitement at the idea that the gunshot could've come from a search party. Sure, she was happy at the thought of going home. She wasn't made for the primitive life. However, she wasn't so excited to leave Anna. She would feel horrible watching the redhead freak out over a shipload of people storming into her jungle, killing her animals, and taking Elsa away...even worse knowing that Elsa left willingly. How could it have come to this? A few weeks ago she was terrified of this woman. She wanted nothing more than to kill and leave this psychopath. Now? Now she doesn't want to go anywhere without her. When she first laid eyes on Anna, she saw a monster; a murderer...an animal. Yet, over time, that managed to change. Now what did she see? She saw a fearless warrior, a protector...a friend. Could she really just hop on a boat back to civilization and live life the same?

'Elsa...waiting...fire...warmth...pain...almost there…'

A rustle of leaves had Elsa's eyes glued to the entrance of the cave. Seeing as though this were a jungle, it could literally be anything at the bottom of those steps coming through those ferns. Not wanting to risk her life to some wild feline, she back up towards the back of the cave reaching out for anything within Anna's giant stash of collectables from all the people she killed. Glancing down, she reached for a bowie knife she caught gleaming deep within the clutter of items.

Anna normally always made her way into the cave by the vines near the entrance, the same vines she used to dip out of this place when the gunshot sounded. The apes normally used the same method. Reasonable, considering they don't really need stepping stones or cliffside pathways to get to high places. That means that whatever was coming into their shelter was something that couldn't scale a cliff, nor could it swing on vines. It had to be a stray wild animal that just happened to find their way u-

"Elsa…"

Or it was just Anna.

Elsa released a breath she didn't know she was holding. "Fuck, you scared the shit out of me!"

Anna said nothing. Instead, she continued to limp over to her favorite little sleeping spot, practically falling over to lay on her side.

...wait...limp?

"A-Anna!" Elsa dropped the knife and rushed over to the wounded girl. "What happened to you!? Are you alright?"

Anna groaned, unhappy with what she considered to be an unnecessary amount of noise near her ear. She threw her hand back, personally hoping to hit Elsa in the face. When she felt nothing she immediately followed the action up with a wave that clearly said 'fuck off'.

"Anna, your leg...please, tell me what happened!" Elsa reached over, lightly touching the bloody, bandaged wound. She could tell Anna still felt it by the way she slightly growled. "Did someone wrap it up for you? You only ever use herbs and plants for your injuries…"

Anna sat up, abruptly. Her eyes were tired. In fact, there were heavy dark bags hanging from her eyes and her face was virtually limp. She looked as if she were struggling just to sit up in her current position; her body was waving left and right, on the verge of falling over.

Elsa winced at the sight. She carefully reached over and grabbed the younger girls shoulders, lowering her down to lay back on her side once more. "I...I think we can talk tomorrow."

Anna said nothing. She closed her eyes and Elsa sat down beside her now loosened body. The blonde began to gently scratch at the girl's head. Looking down at her, Elsa felt a pang of sadness in her heart. Anna looked old in this moment. It was as if this whole situation was getting to her. People popping up left and right on her island and causing trouble. Every time, she had to go and stop them. This time, she had someone in her cave that she also watched out for. In other words, Elsa had become a burden. She didn't exactly know if that's how Anna felt. Like she had to protect her home and Elsa at the same time. Elsa wasn't fit for this life, as stated earlier. Anna had to twice as much food back to the cave, which meant longer hunting time and increased stockage. She had to make sure Elsa wouldn't be too badly affected by the environment. Anna was used to the blazing sun. Yet she went out of her way to make sure Elsa had a place to cool off every once in a while; whether it's the river, or simply shaded areas with less exposure to the sun's heat. Anna had to patrol the territory with perfection; the slightest mistake could have Elsa dead in seconds. Anna was well prepared to defend herself. Elsa was not. Anna could sense danger before it came. Elsa could not. Anna's reflexes were remarkable. Elsa's were not.

Elsa was like a child, and Anna was the guardian.

It really makes Elsa wonder why Anna even allows Elsa to stay; let alone, live. She should've killed her when they met...but she didn't. She should've left Elsa out to die when she ran away, but she didn't. She should've allowed the apes to pumble her, but she didn't. Anna let her stay, kept her fed, kept her clean, and kept her alive. Looking down at the peaceful, yet exhausted girl; one would assume Elsa would decide leaving was the best possible option. To give Anna the freedom to herself. To break the chains she bound the redhead in by simply being her. One would think that Elsa thought it would be best to find those men, hop on a ship, and get out of Anna's hair so that she didn't have to struggle anymore. So that Elsa wouldn't be a burden.

...but no.

Instead, this made Elsa more determined to pay the girl back. To do anything to show her how much she was appreciated for all the shit she had to do. It made it clear to Elsa that she owed Anna. She owed Anna her life. To leave would be like spitting in the redhead's face for all she did. No. Elsa decided right then and there.

She was going to stay with Anna, and she was going to repay her debts.

It might sound like a dumb idea, to remain in a dangerous jungle when she had a one in a lifetime opportunity to get the hell out of there; but somehow, Elsa wasn't at all afraid of staying. Not when she had Anna right here beside her. Elsa would learn all she could from Anna, and in return she would teach Anna all she could. Elsa would learn how to hunt like Anna, fight like Anna, communicate like Anna, and even be brave like Anna. The only reason this jungle was dangerous was because she didn't know it. Well, it was damn well time to start knowing it. She would stay with Anna, that was her choice. The young, ginger-headed, terrifying beauty on her lap had her support and trust.

She would stay with Anna...no matter what.

~~000~~

Anna blinked the sleep from her eyes as the sun's rays shined down through the entrance of the cave. She groaned, sitting up and stretching her back. She didn't see Elsa in her normal spot on the other side of the now blown out fire. Of course, that was because Elsa had slept beside her last night. She the redness off of her face as she slowly turned to see the blonde lying down beside her, like she thought.

She was peaceful...beautiful even. Anna had noticed it before, but it always seemed like a new discovery when she got the chance to look at Elsa again. This blonde who had managed to change Anna's life around within only a matter of days. Anna had picked up new routines for the woman; more hunting, better stocking, and even ensuring Elsa was comfortable within this new environment. Shockingly...Anna didn't regret a second of it. She enjoys watching Elsa's face light up when she discovers a new way to communicate with the apes. She couldn't help but smile when Elsa finally managed the upper body strength to climb and hang on a vine. The sound of Elsa's laugh of success when she finally climbed a tree sent a wave of warmth to her heart. The way Elsa was determined to be able to travel on foot without shoes, regardless of the horrible pain, cuts, and impalements she had to go through, made Anna proud.

Yes, it was definitely worth it. Not a single drop of sweat that fell from Anna's head fell in vain.

It was amazing. This woman who she had wanted nothing more than to strangle with her bare hands upon first meeting was now someone she wanted to protect with her life. Anna was horrible with expressing herself to people, and wouldn't be surprised if Elsa got fed up with her constant negative actions towards her. She had ignored Elsa so many times, and basically treated her like crap. She didn't really know how to treat another person. Anna only remembered how to be treated, not how to treat others. She knew that, reasonably, she should probably treat others the way she expected to be treated...but it was kind of hard when you haven't had any type of relationship with another person since six years old. Then again, Anna did pretty much kill everyone upon first meeting.

She didn't trust anyone anymore. Not since...since her parents. The memory still haunts her to this day. The sight of her parents going from lively people to empty corpses within seconds. She remembered sitting over their bodies for hours. She cried and cried, nonstop for so long.

After some time, the smell of blood managed to draw the attention of predators. A tiger came out of the woods, and the young Anna had no way of reacting other than to cry harder. She was sure she was going to die. She expected to die. Right alongside her parents, no less. A six year old faced with being eaten alive...one can only imagine how she felt.

If only she had actually died that day.

She remembered everything. The giant white creature that glistened in the moonlight, landing in front of her and roaring into the night sky. The sight of what was once a fearless tiger then became nothing but the sight of a frightened pussy cat running away with its tail between its legs.

That was the day she met Marshal.

She had ran out of energy, and could no longer react. She wanted to cry some more...wanted to scream; but she couldn't. She couldn't make a sound. She quietly allowed this giant beast to lower its head down and sniff her. She guessed it decided she wasn't worth its time when it disappeared behind her. She was wrong. A giant hand wrapped itself around her small frame and hugged her tightly against its chest. Her eyes never left her parents. She could barely feel anything. Not even the warmth of this beast against her cold, limp body. Slowly but surely, her parent's figures began to shrink. She was being pulled further and further into the jungle. She grew weary from the post events, her body shutting down. The fact that this beast kept its stride and pace to a minimum didn't help. The ride was so calming. A small smile appeared on her lips. The warmth...the gentleness...this feeling...it reminded her of her parents.

When she woke up the next day, her new life began. She lost her humanity, and became an animal among the rest of them. She never did hate it, nor did she fear it. In fact, she fell in love with this life. So in love that she hated anyone who threatened it.

When the first batch of people came onto the island cutting down trees and killing animals for sport, she could help but to remember the night her parents died. She couldn't help but to realize how destructive and evil people were; how they always sought to take away one someone cares for. She refused to allow anyone to do that any longer to this land that she lived on, this land that her new family lived on, and this land that her parents died for.

That's how she became who she is today. She hated people and what they did. She didn't trust a single human being…

Until Elsa. Elsa managed to gain the trust Anna kept hidden away...and she didn't even know how.

Anna stood up from her spot beside the blonde. She stretched out her back, turning towards the exit of the cave. She hadn't noticed blue eyes watching her leave.

~~000~~

She was leaving again.

Where was she going?

She's done that at least twice…

Elsa watched the redhead exit the cave. Once she was sure Anna was out of earshot -which is farther than normal human beings- she stood up and stalked towards the opening herself. Luckily, Anna hadn't gone far, and because of her leg injury, she wouldn't be able to generate enough power to launch herself onto a vine, nor would she be able to land without hurting herself. So she was walking, and that gave Elsa enough time to spot the direction she was heading in. It was time she found out what the redhead was up to, leaving during the morning and coming back dirty, with an exception to last night.

She quickly and quietly made her way down to the ground. Being with Anna for some time helped her improve on her stealth. She'd watch closely when Anna went hunting. Anna herself did not eat meat, but Elsa did. So the redhead would break her own personal rule against killing any creature outside of fish just so her companion could eat what she needed. In all honesty, Elsa didn't need meat. But the day when she asked Anna about her no meat rule, she had shown obvious disappointment at the idea of eating nothing but fish and fruits. In result, the redhead decided that it was best if Elsa was not only safe with her, but comfortable too. Anna didn't want to treat the woman like a prisoner under her rules. Elsa could see that clearly.

As Elsa reached the ground, she prepared to follow Anna as quietly as possible. At least that's what she hoped when she felt a sudden weight on her back. She bit her tongue to keep from squealing, arms instantly reaching up to grab at whatever it might have been. Her fingers made contact with the light fur of a small body. She sighed in relief as the small squeals of Agdar passed through her ears. She pulled him to her front and smiled a small smile. "Hey buddy." She whispered, "You scared me. You know Anna has crazy hearing, so don't give me away like that."

The monkey chirped, wiggling out of Elsa's grip and climbing up her arm to sit on her head. She giggled, and once he was settled, she continued down the direction Anna went.

There were many things Elsa expected to see while following the girl. Perhaps she was doing some rough training with that spear she brings everywhere. Something about the image of the younger girl sweating profusely under the blazing sun from the intensity of her combat practices made Elsa blush. Her glistening wet skin...her hair clinging to her forehead...her toned body…

Elsa shook her head. Maybe it wasn't that...maybe Anna was just on her daily scouting routine. That makes sense...or not. Anna never went past a little further than the territory of the apes when she scouted, and that's exactly what she was doing right now as Elsa stalked her. Along with that, there was no reason for her to be as filthy as she was when she would come back to the cavern.

Emerging from a row of ferns, Elsa realized she couldn't have been further from the truth. In fact, there was no way in hell she would have ever thought of this.

In this large open space far outside of the Ape territory, multiple oval shaped holes have been dug into the ground and other parts of the field had holes that looked to be filled. Bodies littered the place, and Anna stood among them. Of course, having seen who Anna was when they first met, anyone would assume she had just killed these people around her. However, these people...they were familiar. Too familiar. In fact

They were the same men that had been shipped along with her to this island. It was easy to identify them...only because it was easy to identify the body of a brunette haired man.

Alex

Elsa stepped further into the field. She was just about ready to call out to Anna and demand to know what was happening...but then she saw it for herself.

Anna had grabbed the closest body to her and began dragging it to the first hole she could. She dropped his body in and proceeded to fill it using her own two hands.

She was burying the dead men.

It was at this moment Elsa knew just how human this girl still was. The people she hated most, and killed out of that said spite...she still gave them a proper burial. She didn't leave those bodies out to rot. The question now is whether or not she did that out of respect...or for Elsa. Either way it was something amazing to see from a girl who Elsa had thought to have lost her humanity to animalistic ways.

Anna did indeed feel.

She did indeed have emotions.

And she sure as hell showed them.

She showed remorse.

~~000~~

Hans had kept an eye on his tracking device since the break of dawn, and had noticed where it remained stationary the longest. He could only assume that that was the place the girl would be holding up. There was a possibility that this area was nothing, and that there was no reason to go. Yet, the fact that there was an uncivilized young girl, who clearly had been here for a while, living like an animal without any sign of suffering...it was enough to pull him forward.

He looked around from the passenger side of the jeep, eyeing the other to four vehicles following them. They were all armed to the bone in case anything happened on this journey. They were getting close to their destination, and if possible they would finally get a lead to their mission; or even better, an immediate success. There was no guarantee these hopes would be satisfied…

But Hans was desperate. Anything would do.

~~000~~

"Why?" She had to know. It wasn't like she didn't have an idea, but knowing Anna, she could be completely wrong. The girl wasn't that easy to read.

Anna shuffled awkwardly under the blonde woman's curious look. "You...you were sad."

"And so...you buried them?"

"Is that bad?" The younger girl looked up, and Elsa could see just a bit of fear in her eyes.

"No!" The blonde assured. "Not at all, really! It was just unexpected is all!"

Anna didn't seem to understand. She remained closed in on herself, shuffling side to side under the awkward situation. Elsa grimaced. She really should've thought this through before just jumping out of the bushes.

Agdar squealed from the top of her head. Anna glanced up at the young ape. She hummed, turning around and walking over to an area of the open field with a heavy amount of plant life. She reached down and picked up a leaf the size of her own head, then proceeded to bring it back over to where Elsa stood with Agdar.

She held the leaf out ot Elsa. "He's hot."

"Huh?" Elsa looked up at the sky. The sun did seem to be blaring down on them. Now that she actually took time to realize it, the heat was pretty bad. She had on a tanktop and shorts and yet that still seemed to do nothing for her. She could only imagine how agdar felt under all that fur. It made sense now why the apes nested under all those trees and near a river.

She took the leaf from Anna and held it over her head to shield Agdar. He squeaked in delight, snuggling further into the blonde woman's hair.

Elsa smiled. She looked back at Anna...Who was looking at her.

Here stood a girl who went out of her way to bury the dead for Elsa's own comfort; and along with the dead, she buried her own negative feelings to get the job done, even though she didn't need to. This, again, only made Elsa see her in a different light. From the girl who Elsa wanted dead for the murder of her comrades and her kidnapping, to a girl Elsa came to...to care for.

How had this happened? From the minute she found out who Anna truly was, she became more sympathetic. From sympathetic, she became attached. Elsa had never felt this way before. Growing up practically alone kept her from being able to experience these kind of feelings for herself, so she didn't exactly know how to explain it. She didn't even know what she really felt.

All she knew was that this woman made her want to be by her side constantly.

And as Anna's teal eyes stayed glued to hers, she knew that without a doubt…

She'd never have the strength to actually leave her.

Bang bang bang

Grrrrrr

Pop pop pop

Elsa snapped out of her trance. Almost immediately, Anna was sprinting in the direction of the noises. It took Elsa a while to realize what was happening, but unlike last time, she didn't hesitate to follow.

Grabbing Agdar, she held him close against her chest and broke into her own sprint. She tried her best to keep up with the faster girl, ignoring the pain of the stick and stones poking at her bare feet. She's far more used to it now than she was when she first had to maneuver without them, so it wasn't too much of a hassle getting through the jungle.

Anna seemed to be running like a crazed beast, similar to last time. She was dodging obstacles fluently, allowing nothing to get in her way. Yet, at the same time, she seemed to be very careful about the path she was taking and where she was stepping. For someone with an injured leg, she seemed to be very unbothered at the moment. Perhaps the adrenaline was keeping her from recognizing any pain, or maybe she simply didn't care. Either way, she sure did learn her lesson from the last time she went rushing out towards danger.

It had come to Elsa's attention that the direction they were heading was familiar. She grimaced, her heart slightly sinking at the recognition. This was the same path they took to the open field where Anna was burying those bodies...which meant that sound was coming from near the nest...the apes' nest.

Elsa gasped. She was sure Anna knew this, and even though she was behind the redhead, she could feel the fear radiating off of her. She knew that if she had the chance to see Anna's eyes, they'd be pinpricked and filled with anger, shining with bloodlust.

They finally broke through to the nest of the apes. They made it back home. Back to Anna's family, and Elsa's temporary comrades. They had finally broke through to the creatures Anna cared most for…

Seeing what they saw made Elsa freeze in her spot.

Blood everywhere.

Man and ape.

Bodies littering the ground.

Elsa could barely move, and neither could Anna. The younger girl was practically seconds away from tearing up. Her mouth hung open, eyes wide in shock. Her hands were clenched and straining at her sides. She looked like she wanted to scream, to cry, or anything.

Smoke and dust filled the air, and the smell of blood filled her nose. The only thing that Anna could possibly have to think positively about is the fact that the apes were holding their own against the intruders. The best proof of that was how even though there were dead apes, the human bodies around them were twice as much. Other than that, Anna was completely at a loss of words or reaction.

"No way...Elsa!?"

The blonde woman jumped, hesitantly turning around. She was still shaken up from what she had just become witness to...so she couldn't exactly leap for joy when a certain ginger man came into view.

"Hans…"

"You're here! We finally found you!" The man laughed as he ran over to her. He came to a halt upon noticing Anna nearby. "Her again?"

"Hans...what's happening here?"

The man furrowed his brows in confusion. She should be happy, right? They found her. She can come home. "We're saving you! Bringing you home!"

Somehow, the smile on his face made her uneasy. She looked around; at the blood on the ground, at the bodies it belonged to, and the smoke that spread through the air. "Why...how is this saving me?" She gestured to the chaos around them.

Hans' smile began to fade slowly. "This... this is payback."

"They're animals Hans!" Her voice began to rise, along with her anger. "What do you mean payback? They don't have morals or rules and you're...you're...you're doing this to punish them for being what they are!?"

How dare she. He was working so hard to find and save her, and instead of a thank you, he gets this.

"If you really just wanted to save me, then stop this! We can go back now!"

That would not do. Not for Hans. This had to continue. He had to see this moment through. "No...they'd just come back and do it again."

"What? What are you talking about Hans?" She was cautious now. Hans wasn't an idiot. If they left the island, there was no possible way that any animal could follow unless it was on the boat. So exactly what did he mean when he said they'd come back?

Hans sighed. "I guess the truth comes out, huh?"

"What…?"

"Elsa, we will get you home. I just...these monkeys are loose ends. I have to come back here...this island...my father wishes to improve it, but we can't improve it with animals that intend to kill us for stepping foot on the island."

Elsa said nothing. She could hear Anna growling from behind her, unhappy with Hans' presence, but tolerating it due to Elsa's lack of hostility towards him.

"Elsa, this is a land under your name. I need you to hand it over to me. Let the Westerguard family turn it into something better. Something civilized." He took a step forward.

"What the hell are you saying, Hans!" She was shaking. This whole situation was unexpected. To think that she'd allow anyone to destroy this place...this home...Anna's home. "You're crazy if you think any of that is going to happen!"

"Tch!" Fuck her. She didn't understand. She was just a little delusional from being here in this hot jungle for so long, that's all. "Elsa, you need to understand...this is for the best! We're friends right?"

"I don't know who the fuck you are right now! I come here, seeing you raging war against fucking animals, then talking about the rights to the Island? Hans I-"

"You won't understand right now, but you will once it's done! I promise, Elsa!" He reached out to her, attempting to take hold of her arm. "Just come with me."

With a loud growl, Anna was in front of him, blocking him off from Elsa. She had her spear clutched in her hands and the head pressed against his chest. Hans looked down at it, then back up at her. "You had her this whole time...I'm glad we followed you."

"Hans, if you want to leave, we can leave! Just call this off!" Elsa tried once more.

"No, I can't. My father has given me orders, and I have to carry them out."

"So you were just using me, right!" She was desperate now. "You betrayed our friendship...but I will forgive you if you just-"

"To hell with that!" His reached behind his back. "You don't understand, so let me help you understand!"

He pulled his hand from behind his back. He had something in it. Almost immediately, a large bang sounded. Elsa could move, and she could react. She watched as Anna fell to the ground, clutching her side. Hans looked down at the injured woman, his eyes now filled with craziness. Anna tried to stand up, but fell back down when he kicked her to the ground. Elsa still could not react. She knew she had to move...to do something. This man was going to hurt Anna...all the times Anna protected her and this is how she repaid the younger woman.

She just watched as Anna trembled on the ground, desperately trying to get to her feet every time, and getting pushed back down by Hans who was frustrated with her determination. Blood was leaking from between the younger girls fingers clutched on her side. She needed to get help...otherwise she would die.

"Hans...Hans stop please!" Elsa cried.

But he didn't stop. He wouldn't stop. Instead, he reached down and ripped Anna's spear from her hands. He held it above her, the head pointing down. He was gonna kill her, and Elsa couldn't fucking move. Why couldn't she fucking move!? Time was slowing as he struck down at the girl. Elsa cried, tears streaming down her pained face as she watched the end come for the girl.

Thud

Elsa was shaking. She looked up.

And so did Hans

Rooooooaaaaaaaarrrr

The blonde woman smiled. "Marshmallow"

It was Hans' turn to be frozen and unable to move. The large white ape began to beat on his chest, staring angrily at Hans. Anna finally took this moment to stand.

Marshmallow roared again. He swung his arm out and slapped Hans to the side. The ginger man went skidding, only stopping when he collided with a tree. The ape didn't stop there, however. Marshmallow continued to advance on him.

From around them, Elsa could hear footsteps and yelling. Hans' men heard the roar...and they're coming this way.

"Anna!" Oh now she can move…

The girl glanced at her as she reached down to pick up her spear and strap it onto her back.

"There are more men coming! We have to run!" Elsa continued.

Anna snarled, looking back towards Hans and his impending doom...or what it would've been. Anna called out to the ape that saved her those years ago, and he looked back at her. Elsa couldn't know exactly what was happening, but she watched as Anna began to swing the arm she wasn't using on her wound, in a direction opposite to Hans. She was shaking her head in a 'no' motion.

Marshmallow let out a growl and stomped his fist against the ground. Yet, that only made Anna exaggerate her action more. Marshmallow huffed and Elsa finally got it. Anna was telling him that he had to run.

As stubborn as this ape normally was, he seemed to understand. He didn't fight back this time. He came up to Anna and placed his fist against her forehead, letting out a low whining sound. Anna moved from behind his fist and ran over to hug him. Amazingly, he wrapped his arm around her back. Gorillas were truly a beautiful and interesting species.

They let go of each other. Marshmallow turned away and disappeared through the thick trees. His roar could be heard as he went, fading away ever so slowly. He was calling upon the rest of his family to follow him. Elsa prayed that they'd get to safety.

Anna turned back to Elsa. It was time they were on their way too.

"Elsa…"

She hesitantly looked towards Hans who had been sitting against the tree the whole time.

He continued to talk. "You can't get away from this. You can't…"

The woman inhaled deeply, taking hold of Anna's arm. "Watch me." With that, she took off away from the scene just as she heard Hans' backup find him.

This time Anna struggled to keep up with Elsa, her wound getting the best of her. Anna looked up away from the blood on her hands. She gasped in surprise upon Seeing Agdar still clinging to Elsa's back. He was buried into the woman's shirt, obviously due to the fear of what was happening back there. However, Anna didn't say anything. There was no point. He'd have to stay with them now that he was here...wherever they went. It wasn't safe to try to camp outside of the Ape's territory. Anna was not capable of fighting any threats with this injury. Elsa must have known that, right? So where exactly would they go?

Elsa halted their running right when she came upon a familiar treeline. Anna bent down slowly, ignoring the pain it brought to her.

The older woman was silent for a second. It appeared as if she were thinking something through. She was going to need to answer soon...now that Anna recognized where they were. The redhead already wanted to argue about this decision, regardless of whether the reasoning was good or not. Elsa held up a hand to stop Anna before she could reject the unsaid plan.

"Listen," Elsa pointed over to the waters across the beach. "I know what you're thinking. I brought us to this beach because this is the only way we can leave the island-"

"No."

"Anna we have to leave-"

"No."

"Why not?" Elsa hissed. Even Marshmallow had enough sense to put his stubbornness aside for once, and he's a damn gorilla.

"This is my home."

"I know that, Anna! And I promise that we will come back!"

Anna huffed, looking out at the beach and watching the many men walk around. She didn't like how many of them there were.

"Right now, we need time to figure out how to save this place." Many people would just tell her to call the police, but there would be many problems with that. If she involved the authorities they would indeed arrest Hans and his men. What they were doing was considered poaching; Gorillas have a slow reproductive rate, so it's easy to endanger their species. They aren't allowed to be hunted. However, if heard that they had massacred a whole beach of men from the start, the authorities themselves might take action; whether it was closing the island or something else...it would separate her from Anna. Getting them involved would not work in her favor, nor Anna's. They had to do this themselves.

"Anna, you see those boats?"

Anna nodded.

"We're gonna sneak onto one and get out of here. Okay?"

Anna was still for only a moment...but eventually she nodded. Elsa smiled.

"Okay...follow me."

They emerged from the treeline, yet stayed hugged against it. They had to remain in the shadows as much as possible. There was no trouble getting to the shore, but getting to the boats was a different story. It was a wide open space. If someone looked in their direction, it would be easy to spot them. Elsa had thought about using the water to swim over to the boat, but Anna made it clear that that was a bad idea when she told her to look behind her. Sure enough, when Elsa looked behind her there was a baby gorilla's arms holding onto her shoulders. Fucking Agdar.

The only chance they had was to wait a bit for night fall. It wouldn't be too long, about another hour or so. Elsa was hesitant, seeing as though Anna still had a bullet in her side. Nonetheless, they waited. They watched as the men began to settle down for the night, and when the beaches were just about clear, they stood up and continued their mission. They hurried over to the boats. Getting Anna on became a struggle as the girl, being too comfortable with the roughness of the jungle ground, heavily disliked the feeling of the boat on her feet. Just as they got onto the deck, large commotion started up from behind them. They ducked down, looking over the ship's railings. It was Hans. They had returned. The beach began to display hectic men running around, yelling back and forth. They're either preparing to go after those apes or they're preparing to search for Elsa and Anna. Neither was a good thing.

Elsa grabbed Anna's arm and pulled her along as Elsa desperately searched for the captain's quarters. Anna stumbled along the ride not from her injury, but her fascination with the things that popped up as they went. Her family had lived on the island her whole life. She'd never once been on a ship. She didn't notice Elsa stop. She found herself looking at a painting. It had a woman in armor riding a horse. She didn't know what, but something about that painting made her love it. She reached out to touch it.

"Joan of Arc."

Anna jumped, spinning to come face to face with a large blonde man and a dog...it had been long since Anna had seen a dog. She bent down almost immediately after she saw the man. She smiled and reached out towards the creature. She could hear Elsa's giggling. The man and Elsa continued the conversation that Anna didn't even know they had.

"So…? What do you think? We have to leave this place and this is the only way…" Elsa sighed. She was growing exhausted.

"I'll talk to him, Elsa. I'll persuade him to set sail, don't you worry. You just take her and your...monkey, and find a room to rest in. We can talk tomorrow...i'm so glad you're okay."

"Thank you, Kristoff. Seriously...I've never had someone I can trust as much as you."

It had ended there. Anna felt herself being pulled away from the dog and down the hall. She frowned in disappointment. She really liked that dog.

Within seconds, she found herself in a well lit room. She looked around in interest. There were paintings here and there, pretty objects everywhere, and a weird ugly box sitting on a dresser. She walked up to it, poking it with her free hand. Elsa came up beside her and did the same, except when she did it the box began to light up and make noise. Anna jumped back, throwing herself into a defensive stance. Elsa laughed.

"It's just a TV, Anna." She came up to the girl and pushed her slightly onto a bed. As soon as Anna sat on it, she gasped.

The younger girl climbed further onto the bed and, like a dog, began to squirm around in it. It was squishy and soft. She remembered this feeling. She liked it. Her parents were primitive people. They didn't even have this to sleep on.

Agdar squeaked from behind Elsa's ear. He leaped down and jumped on the bed with Anna.

"Now stay there." Elsa grabbed a white box from under the TV. "We need to handle that wound-"

Before she could finish, Anna was already up and moving. She bounded over towards the dresser with the mirror. She let out an 'ooooo' sound as she moved around, watching the other her move around with her. Then, almost immediately, her attention was drawn to the weird bowl of red and white circles. She picked one up and started to observe it.

"You're supposed to eat them." Elsa sighed in amusement.

Blinking, Anna shoved it into her mouth.

"Wait no…" Elsa cringed as the girl began to chew.

Anna furrowed her brows, pulling the item out of her mouth. Now it was just crushed up inside slobbery paper wrappings. Elsa walked over and grabbed another, this time unwrapping it. She then handed it to Anna to try again. Anna put it in her mouth...and immediately spit it back out. She began to cough.

"Not a fan of peppermints, eh?" Elsa giggled. "Okay, now let me fix your-"

Anna walked off again. This time to a machine with cups surrounding it. Her parents never had this many items on the island with them. Some items here were familiar, others were a complete mystery. Anna poked around at it. Some spots were a different color than the rest, and that's where she poked. One spot sunk into the machine and popped back out, and this got the thing to make some sort of gurgling noise.

"That's a coffee maker...here." Elsa walked over and placed a cup under it. She then opened some sort of thing and place this smaller cup inside of it, closing the thing again. She pressed a button. Brown liquid came pouring out of it. When it stopped, Elsa took the now filled cup and place sugar and white liquids in it. She took a thin stick and stirred it, then she blew carefully onto it. The steam that came from it earlier died down. When she finished, she handed the cup to Anna.

"You're supposed to drink it." Elsa pointed out. "Only take a sip because it's ho-"

Anna downed it. Forthwith, she screamed, coughing it all up and rubbing at her tongue. Elsa groaned.

"Okay, okay, come on let me help." Elsa grabbed the pained girl, along with a cup, and pulled her into the restroom. She turned on the cool water and filled up the cup, telling Anna rinse her mouth out with it. Anna obeyed. While the chance was there, Elsa opened up the med kit and got to work on her bullet wound, as well as cleaning Anna's bloody hand. Luckily, it was not a fatal wound, and nothing too important was hit. Anna barely noticed Elsa down there. Elsa assumed Anna was very much use to being badly wounded and having to heal it. She had scars all over her body, in fact. Elsa wasn't surprised a burned tongue was more painful to her than a bullet wound.

When she finished, she told Anna she could stop rinsing her mouth. Anna smiled in gratitude. Elsa turned off the running water and turned around to throw the cup away.

The water started running again.

Turning back to Anna, she turned off the water again. "Don't waste the water…"

Anna turned it back on.

Elsa sighed and turned it off again, this time holding Anna's hands in her own. Anna stood still for a minute. Then she shifted from leg to leg. "I have to pee."

Elsa snorted. "Christ, okay. Come here."

Elsa lifted the lid of the toilet next to her. Anna walked over and looked inside. She squinted in confusion. "Drink?"

"No, please do not do that." Elsa shook her head. "How they hell did your family live on that island for so long."

"My papa used to say we were one with nature."

"You sure fucking are…" Elsa backed up from the toilet to give Anna space. "You pee in there."

Anna looked down, then back up. "How do I clean?"

"Toilet paper."

Anna said nothing.

Elsa pointed to the roll of toilet paper on the sink. She grabbed it and unrolled a few squares, ripping it off and making a wiping motion down low. "Back to front."

When Anna began to undo her pants, Elsa turned away. She awkwardly whistled to rid of the noise behind her. A few seconds passed.

"Done?"

Elsa turned back around. "Now press that button on the side..the silver on- no don't pull it. No don't press it li- just...there! Yes! Push that down!"

She probably should've warned Anna about the noise. The minute she flushed the toilet, she screamed and jumped back into the shower. Elsa huffed. Honestly, even people who use these things daily still get scared by the sound, so she couldn't blame the girl. "Well, since you're in there you might as well take a shower."

As Anna got out of the tub, Elsa made her way over. "You see this? This is a shower. It cleans your body. Take this-" She handed her a rag. "And this-" She handed her soap. She turned on the shower. Anna backed away.

"It's just water, Anna. Get undressed, step in, and use that soap and rag to wash yourself." She set an example by rolling up her arm sleeve and getting her arm wet under the water, then she took the soap and rag from the girl and rubbed it across her own skin. Anna watched as the suds from the soap began to cover Elsa's arm. Elsa then put the bar of soap on the edge of the tub and continued to scrub with the towel. Her arm, which was actually dirty, began to shine with cleanliness. She then rinsed off her arm and the towel. The dirt fell from both. "You see?"

Anna nodded.

"Good. Do that all over your body." She didn't worry much about Anna's hygiene. They girl lived in the jungle for thirteen years and Elsa never smelled any stink from her. She always had a nature-like musk. Meanwhile, Elsa struggled with everything hygienic out there.

She allowed Anna to take her shower. When the girl came out, Elsa reminded herself to get unscented soaps for her. Anna was not a fan of the smell of irish spring. Anna's sense of smell was better than any normal person's, and the strong fragrances were painful to her.

Elsa bathed next. She took the time in the shower to think about what exactly they were going to do. Obviously Elsa would have to take Anna home. To a civilized area with cars and other things Anna hadn't been exposed to since birth. Elsa always wondered about the Arendelle family. When she was a girl, her parents always told her how they were secluded on an island. They started living there as soon as they discovered it. It was something she still couldn't wrap her head around. Then again, she was so used to civilization that she didn't think she could ever understand primitive life. She was sure Anna felt the same. Regardless, this is Elsa's moment to pay Anna back for everything. The girl had taken care of Elsa when Elsa was in her territory. Now it's time for Elsa to take care of Anna, because this time, Anna's in Elsa's territory. Stepping out of the shower, she dried off and put on the fresh clothing Kristoff brought from them. She was thankful for him...really. She felt heartbroken upon seeing his face again after the time they'd been separated.

"E...Elsa?" Kristoff swallowed. "You're...you're here! Holy shit you're here!"

"Shhhh! Kristoff, quiet down!"

"Quiet down!? You're finally back after all this time! Where were you! God, you're filthy! Is that a monkey?" He was shaking. He didn't know whether to touch her or not. His eyes were watering. She could tell that he was full of a whole lot of emotion right now.

"Kristoff we're in danger! Please quiet-"

"Danger? How!? Who!? Why is there a monk-"

"Could you shut the fuck up!" She hissed.

Kristoff went quiet.

"Hans has lost it, and I need this ship to get us out of here before he finds us...do you know where the captain is?"

"Yeah...wait...Hans? Is he the one endangering you? That fucking bastard…"

"We can talk about that later, Kristoff. Right now I need this ship to get moving." Elsa placed a hand on his bicep. He relaxed.

"Okay...yeah. I'm sorry, I just…"

Elsa smiled. "I know. Once things get settled, we can talk, okay? Anna and I just need to get out of here first-"

"Anna?"

Elsa nodded, gesturing to the girl behind her. She was too busy looking at a picture to notice them. Kristoff was clearly confused as to who she was and what she was doing here, but he didn't question it.

"It's a long story, but she's never been off the island. She's the daughter of Agdar Arendelle."

"No fucking way…" He strolled over to her. It was an astonishing discovery...her being alive that is. According to the tale, she was six when her family's dead bodies were discovered by the yearly visiting tourists. There's no way she could have survived, alone. Now, here she stood. Alive and somewhat well considering the clear wound on her side. He looked up at the painting she was busied by. "Joan of Arc."

Elsa smiled as she opened the bathroom door. Yes, he was one she could always trust.

Stepping out of the bathroom and glancing out of the ship's window, she sighed. The island was disappearing, slowly but surely. There was no doubt in her mind chaos erupted among the men upon seeing one of their ships randomly leaving. There also wasn't a doubt in her mind that Hans knew she was on it. Looking out, there didn't seem to be another boat moving. They weren't being followed. Which was good. Besides, they took one of the smallest boats brought to the island, meaning their boat was faster than the others even if they were being followed.

Elsa moved away from the window and to her bed, rubbing the towel through her damp hair. She glanced up at Anna who was occupied with the TV. She smiled when she noticed the movie was an old one known as 'Tarzan'. A very fitting thing for her to watch. Agdar was asleep on the pillow behind her, and for some reason, Sven was in here too, laying down next to her. Elsa shook her head and sat down on the bed, picking up a note that was left on her pillow.

Dear Elsa,

As you know, I brought you guys a change of clothes. When I entered the room, Anna was playing around with the toothpaste and toothbrush I'm sure you gave her to use. I tried to help her use them and she bit me. So I let her keep sven in the room in exchange for letting me teach her. She agreed. Word from the wise, do not give her anything mint tasting. She hates it. Then again, it did help to keep her from swallowing the paste. I cleaned up the mess she made and place the items next to the tv so she won't play with them again. She won't go near the TV for some reason, so she won't make another mess. I turned it on for her to watch as well. Also, the monkey was messing up your bed, in which I also fixed up for you. You're welcome. Please take care of your pets better next time. The girl refuses to put on a shirt, so I gave her a bra...she didn't know how to use it. Let's just say I hope she's 18 or older. I promise I remained a gentleman the whole time. Breakfast is at the same time as always, 10:00 am. I told the chefs that Anna doesn't eat meat. I assume anyone who has lived with monkeys for so long would eat like one. I expect a full explanation on what's been happening tomorrow.

Sincerely, Kristoff.

Ps. If she bites me again, I'm placing Sven's muzzle on her.

Elsa chuckled, folding the letter up and placing it on her dresser. She looked over to Anna once again. Kristoff was right about the shirt thing. She sat there in a black nike bra this time, with basketball shorts on. Something about Anna being in civilian wear was...attractive. She looked like a normal woman without all the face pain and camo. Besides her scars and scabs, she looked average. With her scars and scabs she looked pretty...hot. Elsa's face began to heat up. She swallowed, pulling the blankets from under and placing them over her.

The monkeys from the movie began to make noises. Elsa could tell Anna was confused by the way she was huffing in annoyance. "Makes no sense." She complained.

"Those sounds are made by people, not actual monkeys. Of course they won't make sense to you." Elsa reached over and turned off the lamp on her side of the bed. "When you're sleepy, pull this string right here to turn off your light, then get under that blanket, okay?"

"Okay."

Elsa was glad the Tv was on a low volume. She knew Anna would not go near it, regardless of the fact that she wouldn't know how to turn it down if she did. Plus, Elsa was too comfortable to get up.

"Elsa…"

"Yes?"

"Question."

"One."

"Where go?"

Elsa smiled. "We are going to my home."

"Elsa's home…"

"Yes, Anna. Elsa's home."


End file.
